Written in the stars
by PointlessKnife
Summary: The Dragon Civil War is raging on in the kingdom of Fiore, and one side has a trump card. Humans, gifted with the powers of dragons, trained to kill, the Dragon Slayers. What happens when one of these powerful weapons is blasted to a human town and learns the meaning of freedom? (AU)
1. Chapter 1

Fighting a dragon wasn't anything new for them. They were the weapons that one of the sides in the dragon civial war used. They were merely fufilling their purpose and weren't allowed to see it any other way. They were weapons, not supposed to have an opinion. Well, their teachers told them otherwise but they were the only ones compared to the entire army.

See, since they were fighting dragons for the sake of humans it was some big symbol for the dragons to grant humans their powers and train them. They were the perect weapons, swift and nimble but with the strength of a monster.

Every battle they would go into dragon force and wordlessly attack together. They seemed unstoppable and even the humans had heard of them. The humans lived far away from the dragon war, in towns and cities far away from the fighting. Yet they would occasionally send people to go and see what was going on.

Natsu gritted his teeth as his latest attack did little damage on this dragon's water scales. It boomed with hissing, deafening laughter. Mocking him because he was a human. He let out a wordless snarl and launched himself back at the smug little lizard. It wasn't usual for him to have so much trouble with a dragon but this monstrosity was using two elements. Water and Earth. Wendy yelled out a warning and grabbed him out of the way as the dragon's attack launched from behind.

"Be careful." she whispered. Yes, they weren't supposed to talk. They needed to be mindless killing machines but what the officals didn't know wouldn't hurt them. Every night they would talk in hushed tones of what they had before, what their life was like with the humans.

Laxus grunted as Wendy dropped them back on the cliff they had been resting on. "Right. We're going to have to hit it all at once. Dragon forces at full power guys."

The others nodded and their bodies started to glow, wounds healing slightly and the seven beings radiated power. They charged at the beast head on, Laxus sending several powerful bolts at the thing's head. Wendy used her wind magic to dart up close and claw at the thing's eyes. Sting and Rogue tried for its leg, but the thick scales were impossible to scratch. As for Gajeel and Cobra, they took head on literally and charged at the thing's chest and sent as many roar attacks as they could.

Natsu made his worst mistake yet and went for the exposed flank of it. Cobra heard the sluggish thoughts of the dragon and yelled out a warning but it was too late.

"Natsu, watch out!" he cried but the dragon's tail had already swung round and smacked Natsu in the chest, brimming with the power that it had been storing since their small pep talk.

Natsu's eyes widened in suprise as the force of the attack sent him flying, before what happened caught up to him and he was propelled backwards, eyes slowly sliding shut.

* * *

Lucy loved Fairy Tail. The mages were so kind and accepting, they were her family.

"Lu-chan, did you hear the news about the dragon war?" Levy yelled as she walked into the guild.

"No, what happened?" Lucy gasped. With her most recent quest for rent money she had forgotten that it was the time of the month where brave reporters would venture to get news on the dragon civil war.

"The slayers are on the move again," she squeaked, waving a newspaper with a blurry picture on it. Lucy nearly fell of her chair. Everyone had heard about the seven mysterious humans who aided one of the dragon sides with the fight and were crazy strong, but no one had ever got a picture before.

Lucy leapt away from her table to get a closer look. There were seven figures alright but they were all shrouded with the smoke that was clearly the result of their most recent fight. She could see the shadow of someone big and then someone very small but the one closest to the camera had spikey hair and what looked like a scarf around his neck.

"Wow." she breathed.

"I know right!" Levy beamed. "It's amazing."

Sadly, further discussion was held off by Gray being sent flying into them by Elfman. The paper was sent flying into one of Erza's many cakes and then she stormed over to give Gray the punishment for daring to destroy her cake. Erza would never hurt the girls, so therefore it was all Gray's fault.

Lucy remembered looking back to see that the icing had coloured the one with the scarf's hair pink. She laughed, it was so absurd that someone so scary could possibly have pink hair.

* * *

Natsu's eyes remained closed as he was sent flying over the land. He was somewhere between being awake and asleep, in a haze of pain. He hated being like this since it always meant memories, but they weren't really things he could remember, all he knew was that he had seen something that wasn't quite there. When the dragons 'took them in' and gave them powers, they used a memory spell so the humans would have nothing to come back to. Since memory spells were a more human tool, the spell was sloppy, and all the humans had some small thing to hold on to.

For Natsu, it was a smile. He couldn't really remember much about the boy, exept the sad smile when he told Natsu that everything would be okay. Natsu thought that this memory happened the day before the dragons stole him. Nothing was okay anymore. Still, it was the memory of that smile that kept Natsu human. He wondered who the boy was now. He wondered if he still cared.


	2. Chapter 2

Lucy woke up with a start. She lived near the beautiful Magnolia Park so the nights were usually quiet and it was something she appreciated. She tried for another half an hour to sleep and eventually gave up and pulled on her clothes. Happy seemed to hear her movement and blinked awake. "Lushy? What are you doing?" he mumbled.

"Going outside to the park. I can't sleep." She replied softly. She didn't really know that much about Happy, only that he was part of the guild and had been for several years now. When she asked Mira, the friendly barmaid revealed that he came to the guild after something bad happened to his last owner. He refused to talk any more about it, apparently.

"I'll come." he replied instanty, floating up to her side. She shrugged and walked out the door, setting of to the park in the light of dawn. Something seemed off, she could smell something like ash in the air, making her walk faster.

She finally burst into the main area and held back a strangled scream. There was a crater in the middle of the grass and in it was a pink haired boy, lying in a pool of his own blood.

"Happy, quick- we have to get him to the guild!" she cried, rushing forward, missing Happy's face. He looked like he'd seen a ghost.

Lucy forgot all about Happy the second she saw his wounds up close. He needed help, badly. There was a large wound on his stomach, oozing blood. She swallowed hard and grabbed him by the arms and began to drag him to her guild, leaving slight smears of blood on the streets.

* * *

Happy's paws trembled as he held the lacrima up. Zeref's mildly suprised face appeared.

"Happy." It was more of a statement than a greeting.

Happy just stared flatly at him. After he lost Natsu, Zeref stopped at nothing in order to get strong enough to get his brother back. There was an argument and Happy left, taking only the lacrima and the cape Natsu made him with him.

"Natsu's here. One of my guildmates found him and is taking him to be healed. We're in Magnolia."

Zeref's eyes widened in shock. A lone tear trickled down his cheek. "Thank you."

"I'm not doing this for you." Happy warned. "Only for Natsu."

Zeref smiled bitterly. "I know."

* * *

Natsu did something very stupid the second he woke up. He flinched when he saw a human staring at him, they weren't supposed to know that they existed, well not really. They knew about the dragon slayers, but he was pretty sure that he wasn't supposed to talk to them. He tried to edge away and immediately failed. The movement made his wounds flare up with pain and he grunted. Then this alerted the blonde, who leaned over to check on him.

"Are you okay?" She asked. He didn't dare reply, his mind was racing. He must've been blown to a human city by that attack. Now it was up to the other slayers to find him. Great, that was only going to end up in a mess. To top it off, he had no idea where he was.

"What's your name?" She asked, confused. Natsu stared at her. Was it even safe to answer, who was she?

Lucy felt like bashing her head against the wall. Could he not even talk? Sighing slightly she repeated her question. He still didn't reply, instead his eyes darted around the room.

"Natsu!" Happy cried, darting into the room. The boy looked shocked.

"How do you know that name?" He asked, shaking. Then he blinked. "Wait. You're a cat. You can talk and you have wings."

He paused then scrubbed his eyes and blinked furiously. "Nope, this is real."

"Natsu?" Happy asked, looking like he was about to cry. "Don't you remember me?"

The boy, now revealed to be Natsu slowly shook his head.

"Please," Happy begged. "It's me, Happy."

At this Natsu's eyes widened and he clutched his head, "Ha.. Happy."

He slowly reached out and patted Happy on the head. "I sort of remember," he mumbled.

Lucy had read all about memory spells, since the mansion she had lived in had a very nice library. She recognised the symtons and decided to finally speak.

"Are you... Did you have a memory spell placed on you?" She asked. He stared at her, clearly unsure whether to speak or not.

"Natsu," Happy sighed, "this is Lucy, you can trust her, she's one of my guildmates."

Natsu stared at Happy. "It's been a long time since I've seen you. I can't just magically trust someone I've never met before. Besides, do you have any idea how I've lived for the past few years?"

Happy didn't seem suprised by this. "I've got some idea, ever since I saw the picture of you and the other slayers. You know, Lucy was the one who brought you here? She healed you."

Natsu looked at her, silent for a second. "That's true, I can't smell anyone other than you two. Guess I can trust you after all Luigi."

"It's Lucy!" She snapped defensively. Her tone softened as she repeated her question.

"So, Natsu, do you have a memory spell cast on you?" She asked gently.

"Yeah," He muttered, looking away. "It was one of the first things they did to us."

"Who?" Lucy asked, confused. Natsu didn't respond for a long while, not until Happy nudged him angrily.

"The dragons. When they stole me from my home. We weren't allowed to have anything to go back to. They did a horrible job so we remembered some things."

Lucy gasped and realised what that meant while Natsu wondered why he even said that.

"Wait, you're one of the dragon slayers?" She exclaimed.

"Yeah, why else would I... Never mind," he groaned.

Just then the door creaked open and Gray walked in. "Lucy, there you ar- What the hell?"


	3. Chapter 3

Natsu reacted instantly. He sprang up from the bed, wincing as he moved, making his wound. He thrust Lucy behind him and glared at the boy who had just entered the room.

"Who the hell are you?" he snarled.

"That's what I was going to ask you, intruder," the boy spat back.

"Guys, don't fight. I brough Natsu here to be healed because he was hurt," Lucy sqeaked.

Gray stared at her. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"It was about 6 in the morning," she stammered, making Natsu growl.

"Then how did you get in?" Gray was becoming annoyed now. Lucy guiltily shoved Cancer's key further behind her back.

Unfortunatley the yelling from earlier hadn't gone unnoticed and Mira had come in to check on them.

"Who is he?" She asked sweetly, glaring at Gray. "And Gray, your clothes."

"Crap, when did that happen?"

Lucy was about to respond but Natsu covered her mouth. "Don't give my name to any more humans." he hissed.

Sadly, Mira heard this. She stared at the dragon slayer harshly, "I think you need to talk to Master Makarov."

Makarov hadn't even had his first drink yet and there was already trouble in the guild. He was staring mournfully at the enormous pile of paperwork in front of him, when Mira knocked on the door and called, "Master, there's someone who needs to talk to you."

He just knew that it was someone from a village that had been destroyed and they wanted to complain. Bloody typical.

"Come in," he tried to sound polite and mentally prepared himself and his ears for the moaning.

Needless to say he was suprised when someone the age of his brats was pushed in. Not to mention the young man was covered in bandages and grime. Before he could even speak the boy opened his mouth.

"Is there any chance that we can skip this and I can just leave before they come to fetch me," he muttered.

Makarov was again interrupted before he could speak when Mira called through the door.

"Lucy brought him to the infirmary after she found him in horrible condition. He refused to answer anything."

Mararov sighed. "No, you cannot get out of this, boy."

The boy sat down on the opposite chair and glared at him.

"Okay, I'm Makarov, and you are?" He greeted.

"No, I'm not telling anyone else my name, you're not supposed to know I exist," he growled.

"Well, we do know you exist so it can hardly hurt if we know your name."

"Fine, whatever old man. I'm Natsu Dragneel."

"Thank you Natsu. I'm Makarov, Master of the Fairy Tail guild. Right, now how did you get to be so injured?"

There was a long pause and the Master sighed. "You've been through a lot, boy."

"How would you know?"

"The fact it's taking you this long to come up with a believable lie to cover up whatever your story is."

"... I hate you."

"Nonsense, I am loved by all."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, old man."

"Seriously Natsu. You need to tell me what happened so I can help you."

"No. Nothing under the sun will make me tell."

"Why do I have to deal with the stubborn ones?"

"You don't have to. Let me go."

"Do you even know where you are?"

"..."

"Thought so."

"Why are you making this difficult, Old Man?"

"Call me Makarov."

"No."

The argument went on for over an hour. Eventually, Makarov got one tiny bit of information out of Natsu.

"Do you have a family?" He groaned

"Nop- Yes. I meant yes." Natsu said quickly.

"That doesn't matter. We accept anyone in the guild."

"What does that mean."

"Look, you've been through a lot. Everyone has. I'm going to offer you to join the guild, have a family, have friends."

Natsu paused for a second, considering his options. He was stranded in a human town, with no idea where he was. Joining this 'Fairy Tail' was the best way to get information. This seemed like a good idea, it wasn't like he would come to care. Besides, the sooner he got out of this, the sooner he could go back... To what? Either way, this seemed like the best option for now.

"Fine." He sighed.

"So you'll join? Great!" Makarov cheered.

Then he blinked. "Just one question."

"Go ahead my boy."

"What's a guild?"

Makarov fell of his chair at that.


	4. Chapter 4

It took the Master an hour to explain what a guild was, the difference between light and dark guilds, alliances with other guilds and the rules. Finally at the end of it all, he asked where Natsu would like his guildmark and told him to clean up and pick out some clothes.

"Oh yeah, Gramps?" Natsu asked suddenly.

"Yes Natsu?" He really hoped that it wouldn't take another hour.

"Can you... Nevermind. It doesn't matter."

"Whatever. I'm going to take you to the guild now."

He lead Fairy Tail's newest member down to the hall. "Alright you brats, listen up!" he bellowed, catching the attention of several brawling members and taking everyone else by suprise. "We have a new guy here, meet Natsu Dragneel."

Natsu didn't flinch as everyone stared at him. He remembered one of the dragons teaching him not to show weakness.

 _"Okay child. One of the first things you need to know for when you're on the battlefield is to never lower your head. Otherwise you'll seem weak, unable to meet their eyes because you can't handle their challenge._

He met the guild's eyes silently. Then Lucy stepped over. "Hi, Natsu. Welcome to Fairy Tail." she greeted warmly.

"Pfft, he looks so weak." The cold one from earlier scoffed. "I mean, look at his pink hair."

"Say that again to my face, pervert." Natsu snarled. The guy yelped and looked down.

"Damn when did that happen?"

"The new guy doesn't seem very manly." A white haired guy with a scar roared. Natsu had had enough by this time and at that moment started his first Fairy Tail brawl.

* * *

"Rogue, how faint is the scent now?" Laxus asked. For some reason, possibly becuase he was a shadow dragon slayer, Rogue was their best tracker.

"I can still track him, unfortunatley, it seems that he was sent flying towards a human inhabited area."

"Oh God," Cobra moaned. "he's probably gone and done something stupid."

"Humans..." Wendy thought out loud, staring at the horizon.

* * *

Lucy sighed, settling down at a table and trying to avoid the general chaos that the fight was quickly becoming. Levy had been army crawling underneath the tables, as they provided the best defence against the flying chairs and people.

"Lu-chan, come quickly, Mira's letting the sane people into the kitchens."

"Thank God." Lucy slid under the table and joined her friend in edging towards the kitchen door, and both tried to ignore that the floor was shaking slightly.

Eventually, they reached the door that Mira was leading people through. As she was pulled into the warmth and safety, Lucy glanced back at the growing fight.

Natsu had just kicked two people in the face and then punched Gray in the face, grinning like an idiot. _Oh good,_ she thought dryly. _He'll fit right in._

* * *

Wendy didn't really have much to hold onto, she was slightly younger than the others. She remembered a laugh and that was all. She cried when she admitted that was all she had left. Natsu had ruffled her hair and told her that they could be her family. That was all she wanted. No way in hell were a load of random humans taking it from her.

"That's dangerous thinking." Cobra said quietly. Wendy snapped around guiltily.

"Besides, those humans could've easily convinced him to stay with them, heck, they could convince us to stay if they tried." he whispered.

"What do you mean?" she mumbled. "We're a family."

"Yes, but you know what a moron he is. He'll probably get attached." Cobra sighed.

"Then we'll bring him back. We have to."

"I know. Believe me, I know. We can't just walk away."

Wendy looked up sharply. "There's something else, isn't there?"

Cobra looked her in the eye. He was completely serious. "He's hurting. We all are. Maybe he'll try to heal. We don't know."

"... Are we all broken?" Wendy asked shyly, after a while.

"Maybe," Cobra ruffled her hair, "I don't know. I just don't know..."

* * *

Zeref looked up at the sky and sighed. He never really looked at the sky, it made him think about what happened a long time ago. While he missed his brother dearly, he still wasn't strong enough to take him back from those vile reptiles. So he vowed he would become strong enough. Once he could kill them, he'd march in and take his brother back, exactly as his brother was taken from him. Yet in his desire to become powerful, he hadn't realised what he'd been doing, until one day, he looked behind him and saw the destruction and misery that he'd caused. But he still hadn't been strong enough. Not until now. Now he was finally strong enough, Natsu had been sent flying into a human town. He wondered what his brother was like now, as he did every night. Was he a cold blooded killer? Was he still the smiling child from so many years ago? Did he remember Zeref? Would he approve of Zeref, even if he did remember?

 _Oh Natsu..._ Zeref thought sadly. _I hope you can see that all of this, everything I did was all for you._


	5. Chapter 5

"Why are you following me?" Lucy asked. She had just left the guild and was heading back to her house with Happy. The dragon slayer was following her.

"I'm not sure." Natsu shrugged.

"Natsu." Happy gasped, as if suddenly realising something. "Where are you going to sleep?"

Lucy gasped as she too realised that the dragon slayer had nowhere to live.

The dragon slayer shrugged. "I'll find a tree somewhere. It won't be the first time."

Lucy gaped at him. "What? You can't do that!"

Natsu stared blankly at her, "does someone here own all the trees?"

"No... You know what? You can sleep at my place for a while, okay?" She groaned.

"Okay. Thanks."

* * *

Natsu was amazed at Lucy's apartment. It was full of all these strange things.

"Lucy?" He asked, holding up a lamp. "What's this?" He asked.

Happy sighed at him. "Jeez Natsu, you really are hopeless. It's a lamp, it runs on-"

"Electricity?" Natsu interrupted.

"Well yeah, but how do you know that?" Lucy asked, walking over.

"One of the other dragon slayers uses Lightning Dragon Slaying magic." Natsu muttered. "Actually, while we're on this topic, can you not tell anyone about that?"

"Sure, I don't mind." Lucy agreed, "if you don't mind, what is it like, being a dragon slayer?"

Natsu looked at her. "Well, we have to fight where ever we get told, then report back when we couldn't go on any more. Sometimes I fought alongside my teachers. That was always fun."

"Who taught you?"

"The Fire Dragon King, Igneel, then Atlas Flame and then... Well, one of them would gut me alive if he ever found out that I told, and then briefly, Electa, the Lightning Dragon Queen."

"Wow, you certainly know a lot of magic, you must be really strong."

Natsu shrugged. "Depends who you're comparing me to, I have next to no experience on human magic. Or anything human, really."

"Can you read?"

"A little."

"Hey... Coming to a human town must be really hard after all this time. If you want, I can teach you some stuff." She offered softly.

"... Yeah, thanks." Natsu said after a long pause. _I'm sorry,_ he thought, _but if this works, I won't be around to learn much for much longer._

* * *

"Natsu! Wake up!" Happy cried, pouring water over his long lost friend.

"What?" Natsu snapped, immediately awake. He took a second to notice he was drenched and glared at the Exeed.

"Sorry." Happy mumbled. "But you were having a nightmare. You were screaming."

"Right. What was I screaming?" Natsu asked slowly.

"Something that began with an 'A'." Happy replied, looking confused. He was suprised when Natsu went pale.

"Acnologia..." He whispered.

"Who's that?" Happy asked curiously. He hardly knew what happened to the smiling child from years ago.

"No one that you need to worry about." Natsu muttered.

"Guys," Lucy called from a different room. "Breakfast is ready!"

Natsu stared at the thing on his plate. "This is food?" He asked doubtfully.

"Natsu," Happy said seriously. "You have not lived if you've never had a pancake."

* * *

It had been two days since Natsu joined the guild and he was loving it so far. No one asked anything about his past, he wasn't required to go into dragon force and everyone was friendly. In fact, this life was like a dream and he just knew that it was going to become a nightmare soon, just like everything else. Besides, he couldn't get too attached. He had to go back.

"Gray-sama, are you really going to accept the bet?"

"Sure, it'll be easy. Then you'll have to talk in first person."

"No, Gray-sama will have to talk in third person like Juvia."

Natsu didn't bother to see what stupid thing the bet was over and scanned the crowd for Lucy. Suprisingly he had become great friends with the girl who saved his life. Okay, thinking back, it wasn't suprising.

He wasn't really listening to Gray's cry of rage and Juvia squealing. Well, not until he heard Gray talking.

"Juvia is so happy now!"

"Gray is not."

"Wow," Natsu laughed. "Ice princess is such a loser. He can't win a bet."

"Come here and... Say that to Gray's face, Flame brain!" Gray yelled, pausing as he remembered the bet.

"What's Gray gonna do?" Natsu taunted.

"Why you-"

"Boys." Mira said with a terrifying sweetness. "I hope you aren't fighting."

"No matter what," Gray announced. "You can't be as scary as Erza."

Natsu had no idea who Erza was, but it probably wasn't the beest thing to say to Mira. Natsu didn't want whatever was in that cup all over his face. Sucked for Gray, though.

"Natsu!" Lucy called. "There you are!"

"Hi Luce." He greeted cheerfully.

"Gray's knocked out." She noticed. "Wait, were you two fighing again?"

"I didn't knock him out." He said defensively. He really didn't want to be kicked into a wall by Lucy. It was annoying to say the least. "It was Mira."

Lucy opened her mouth to protest but then she looked at Mira. The white haired bar maid was smirking as she 'innocently' cleaned a glass.

"Right." Lucy said slowly. "By any chance did he compare her to Erza?"

Natsu blinked. "Yeah. How did you guess?"

"Those two... Are sort of like rivals..."

"But more extreme." Levy piped up. "Have you seen Jet or Droy?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah. They're over there- in the corner." Natsu replied. It wasn't hard to notice them. His sensitive hearing had picked up their argument before he even walked into the building. Then again, he had been distracted by fighting Gray, so maybe it wasn't suprising that the bookworm couldn't find then.

"Oh dear, they're fighting again." Levy sighed. "Thanks Natsu, Lucy. See you later." She added, before dashing off.

"Oh yeah!" Lucy said randomly. "Want to go on a job with me?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Well, a village is being terrorised by monst-"

"Sure, let's go!"

The two dashed off, Natsu dragging Lucy along until he realised he had no idea where he was going.

"Huh," Mira murmured, "I ship it."


	6. Chapter 6

"What. The. Hell." Natsu choked. He really hated whatever this thing was. It definately wasn't living, it reeked of metal and paint, but moved. It was incredibly unnatural and just the movement made him sick.

"Wow, you get motion sick!" Happy giggled, landing on his head.

"Shut... It... Stupid cat." Natsu gasped, leaning out of the window. He then flopped weakly back onto the seat, head landing on Lucy's lap. She started playing with his hair.

"Are we... Nearly there?" He mumbled, feeling his insides churn.

"Yeah, we're getting off now." She said soothingly. Soon after she said that, the train jolted to a halt, and Natsu leapt to his feet 'accidently' head butting Happy.

"I'm alive!" He yelled, elated at the fact the metal beast had stopped moving.

"Yeah, yeah, how about we find the village." Lucy smiled slightly.

* * *

For a while, they walked in comfortable silence, nobody saying anything, just enjoying the breeze.

"Hey Happy." Natsu asked randomly. "You know how you lived with me before?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Happy asked wearily.

"Was there someone else?" He asked seriously.

"Yes. Your brother." For some reason, Happy sounded bitter.

"Really? Do you know where he is now?" Natsu asked excitedly.

"No." Happy said flatly.

Natsu sagged in disappointment. "Okay, sorry." He said sadly. They walked on in silence until Lucy cried out.

"Look, there's the village!" She exclaimed. At once, Natsu brightened.

"Awesome!" He cheered.

* * *

They raced into the village, only to see a huge, mokey-like monster towering over two small children, a girl with pale brown hair and a pink dress standing in front of her younger brother, who had the same hair and eyes.

"S-Stay away." She stammered.

"Children good eating." It boomed, smirking. The children whimpered. Lucy reached for her keys.

"Open, Gate of the Maiden, Virgo!" She screamed. "Quick, help the kids."

"Princess... Your friend with the pink hair is helping them already. Would you like to punish me?" She asked politely.

"What? No. Could you check the rest of the village?" Lucy asked hurridly.

Natsu had leapt at the Vulcan, punching it in the face with an attack that set his fist on fire. He then suddenly dropped onto his hands and kicked fiercely, making the Vulcan hit the floor with a pained grunt. Then he held a blazing hand close to its face.

"Never do that again." He snarled at the monkey.

"But children taste good." It whined.

"Don't care. Don't do it." He snapped.

"Fine." It grumbled. Natsu's eyes narrowed but he let it go.

"Ha! Me lied!" It cackled, running away, but stopped. Natsu had grabbed its wrist.

"Not something you want to do, buddy." He hissed. Natsu then turned to the children, who hadn't moved.

"Hey kids." He said softly. "Run, go and find your family, someone you trust. You don't want to stay here, it's going to get... Messy."

The kids didn't need telling twice, and dissapeared around the corner.

Lucy watched as Natsu's expression darkened. "... Tell me where your hide out is, and I'll let you live."

"No. You dumb human."

Natsu let out a bitter laugh. "You think I'm still human? Nice try."

"You human." The monster insisted.

"Let me tell you something. I know a lot about the food chain, and guess what? You aren't at the top. Dragons are." He grinned wickedly.

Lucy gulped. She couldn't see this ending well, not at all.

"Natsu..." Happy said quietly.

"You no dragon. You human." This Vulcan sure was stubborn.

"Oh yeah?" Natsu asked quietly. Fire surrounded him and took the shape of a dragon. "One more chance. Tell me where your base is. Or, I can eat you. Vulcans are really tasty, you know?" He smiled, fangs glinting.

"In forest. Near big d-dead tree. A clearing... A big one." The monkey stammered.

"You telling the truth?"

"Y-Yes."

"Good, now scram, before I change my mind." He spat, and watched the Vulcan run away whimpering.

"Darn it, I still can't do it like Laxus does. Man, I even tried to act like him." He muttered.

"Who on earth is Laxus?" Happy asked.

"Oh, he's our leader. He normally gets any information out of dragons that have defences against Cobra."

"I don't even want to know any more. That was brutal." Lucy sighed. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Natsu put an arm around her shoulders.

"Don't look so worried, it wasn't like I was actually going to eat him. Apparently they taste as bad as Wingfish."

"Woah!" Happy screeched, flying over to Natsu with the speed of light. "You-you've actually had... a- a _Wingfish_?"

"Yeah." Natsu looked ill. "I didn't eat food for a week afterwards. It was awful."

"That bad, huh?" Lucy asked, smiling now.

"Oh lord, yeah. It tasted way too bitter. You would not believe it. Even burning it didn't help. And it was the only food nearby. The only good that came out of them was putting one near Igneel's nose and watching his reaction." Natsu laughed.

"Oh? What did he do?"

"Screamed and sent enough fire at it to destroy a mountain." Natsu revealed, grinning. "Atlas Flame never really let him live it down, and especially used it to deflate Igneel's ego whenever he started bragging."

"Wow, he's that scared of them?" Happy snorted.

"So would you, if you'd ever tried one." Natsu said, completely serious.

"Excuse me?" An elderly man interrupted. "Are you the Fairy Tail mages who came to help us?"


	7. Chapter 7

"Yes, sorry, were you looking for us?" Lucy asked politely, stepping on Natsu's foot. She just knew he was going to say something dumb.

"Yes. Could you please follow me? We'd like to talk to you about the job in more detail first." He croaked.

They were lead to a large house, where a bunch of adults sat gathered around an oak table. They all looked up when the group entered.

* * *

"So let me get this straight. The Vulcans have taken seven children in the past month." Natsu said.

"Yes." Confirmed one of the men gruffly.

"Right, rest assured they will be dealt with soon." Natsu swore. "We have a plan."

He then trod on Lucy's foot, causing her to nod.

"Yes," She agreed quickly. "We have a plan to deal with all of them."

"Thank you very much, we really appreciate it."

"So," Lucy turned on Natsu the second they left. "What is this amazing plan?"

"Well," He shrugged. "I never said it was amazing, did I? Weirdo."

"Moron. Just tell me whatever your plan is!" She snapped.

"Remember the Vulcan that told us where their base was earlier?" He asked her.

"Yes, but we have no proof that he wasn't lying." She groaned, seeing flaws in this already.

"Which is why we send Happy to get a better view." He countered.

"Alright. Then what?" She was interested now.

"Do I get a say in this?" Happy asked, but he was ignored.

"Then, using the information Happy gives us, we use your spirit from earlier to trap the exits, with holes so deep that they can't climb out. Then I attack from the middle of their camp, sending all the ones I don't finish off into the traps, where either you or I can deal with them." He explained hurridly.

"That is... Actually a good plan."

"What about me? Do I get to fight?" Happy wailed.

"Depends. Do you think you'd be able to drop me in the middle of their camp?" He asked. "And Lucy, would you be able to summon your spirit? As you might need her out for longer, and I don't want you to be put under pressure."

"Say Natsu," Happy asked suddenly. "Where did you learn to plan like that?"

"Well..." He laughed sheepishly. "Electra didn't take any nonsense. When she found out how bad my tatics were... Well, she couldn't have that. I had to learn two things at once. But are you both good with the plan?"

"Yeah, I'm fine with it." Lucy said, high fiving him.

"Aye, I shall do my best." Happy cried.

"Good, it'd be best to get the trapping done now."

* * *

"Wow, is that all of them?" Lucy panted. She had used her Star-Dress form to help Virgo, although the spirit said that it wouldn't be necessary.

"Aye. Your new power is really cool, Lushie."

"Aww, thanks Happy."

"But the outfits make you look fatter."

"Shut it- stupid cat." she growled.

"That is all the traps dug, Princess. Is it punishment time?" Virgo asked, appearing from no where.

"No, but thank you Virgo. That's all, you can go back now." Lucy said, sounding strained.

"Right." Natsu said. He strangely enough, wasn't looking at Lucy, after taking one look at her Star Dress form and going very red. "I think we're good." He then finally looked at Lucy, noticing that she looked quite tired and pale.

"Luce, you should rest. You've done more than enough." He said gentely, leading her to a tree. She collapsed greatfully.

"Don't worry, I won't let any of them touch you." He promised. "You ready, Happy?"

"Aye!" Happy cried.

With a slight rush of air, the two hurtled into the sky. Happy carefully flew over to the Vulcan camp, where Natsu could faintly hear the monkeys laughing at chatting, mostly about food and women. Natsu nodded, and Happy dropped him, sending him straight into the camp. Just for show, he set his hands on fire, then leapt at the nearest Vulcan, punching it with enough force to send it into the beast beside it. Smirking, he lashed out in all directions, making the beasts stumble into each other in their haste not to be his next victim. In the distance he could hear their yelps and howls of shock as they fell into the traps. It was going perfectly.

Eventually, he ran out of things to hit and went to check on the traps. Sure enough, the Vulcans couldn't escape, and there were long scratches on the mud walls where they had tried to clamber out. After searching the forest and using his enhanced senses, it looked like all of them had been caught.

Then he heard the shrill scream and rushed off, without thinking. Lucy was cowering away from a Vulcan as it loomed over her. Natsu swore under his breath and yelled out an attack name, barreling into the monkey.

"Nice try." He spat. Then he proceeded to use a dragon slayer secret art on the monster.

"Hey Luce," He asked the second he was done. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." She said shakily. "Sorry..."

"I- Don't worry, I promised, didn't I?" He said with a grin. Lucy met his eyes and smiled. Maybe, just maybe, he could make sure she was never hurt while he was there. While he was here, she'd never be hurt again, and he decided to make that a promise.

* * *

"We cannot thank you enough for saving our village. Please take this as an additional reward, he said, passing them a warm loaf of bread, wrapped in plastic. "It's our village's special recipe, please take it."

Lucy smiled, taking the loaf. "Thank you so much!"

Natsu stiffened as the two children, the ones he'd saved earlier suddenly ran up and hugged him.

"Thank you for saving us!" They chorused.

Natsu paused, expression displaying his utter shock, then slowly, he smiled slightly and ruffled their hair.

"No problem." He said softly.

"Aww, who knew Natsu had a soft side." Happy cooed.

Said soft side disappeared on the train, when he tried to jump out of the window.

Lucy ended up getting a call from Mira on her lacrima. She went really pale.

"Guys," She said in a hoarse whisper. "Erza's back at the guild."

"No!" Happy wailed. "We're doomed!"

Natsu groaned his agreement, edging towards the window.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N I know, this is pretty shameful of me, but I forgot... (please don't hurt me!)**

 **Disclaimer: I never have, and never will own Fairy Tail.**

 **Well, I hope you guys enjoy!**

"So let me get this straight." Natsu said for what seemed like the tenth time. "Erza is _really_ strong."

"For the last time Natsu. Yes." Lucy groaned.

"Good," Natsu had a devilish grin on his face. "Can I fight her?"

"What? No, you'd be killed." Lucy gasped.

"Nope, I'd destroy her." Natsu argued.

"Whatever, we're at the guild." Happy said brightly, though there was panic in his eyes. In the end, he settled in Natsu's hair.

Lucy pushed open the doors, as Erza was in mid rant. Everyone turned and stared at them.

"Honestly, I leave for a couple of days and you've ruined the place... Oh, welcome back Lucy, I trust your job was successful? Nevermind, is that the new guy?" She asked sternly.

"Aye!" Lucy squeaked. It was best not to argue with Erza, especially if she was in a mood like this.

"Hmm, Happy seems to have taken a liking to you." Erza said to him.

"Aye, that's because I knew him ages ago, I used to live with him!" Happy blurted. Slowly, Natsu looked up and glared at the flying blue cat, who had sprung away once he realised what he said.

"Eh? You were? What haven't you told us?" Levy asked.

"Sorry, I don't like talking about my past." Natsu said stiffly.

"That's understandable." Mira said warmly. "Whenever you're ready or want to talk, we'll listen."

"Uh... Thanks." Natsu wondered if he could make a run for the door.

"Hmm, new guy, what is your name?" Erza questioned.

"Natsu." He inwardly groaned, there went his chance of escape.

"Very well, Natsu. I challenge you to a duel, battle, whatever you wish to call it. I can sense your magic power." Erza stated.

Natsu smiled. Looks like he'd got the fight he wanted. "Sure, when?"

Erza smirked, cleaning her sword. "Now."

* * *

Nearly everyone in the guild gathered outside to watch.

"Good luck." Gray muttered. He then snickered to hide any warmth he may have just shown to his rival. "You'll need it."

"We'll see." Natsu muttered back, narrowing his eyes.

"Three, two, one... Go!" Makarov yelled, then hurridly moved out of range.

Erza changed into her Heavan's Wheel armour and sent a circle of swords at the fire dragon slayer. Natsu used a roar attack to blast them all away.

"Requip: Blackwing armour!" She yelled, eyes narrowed. When she didn't see the pink haired boy anywhere in front of her, she whirled around and blocked the blow. Natsu grinned and said something quietly, before unleashing a torrent of fire from his mouth. Erza cursed and jumped away, changing into her Flame Empress armour.

"This will half the damage of your fire attacks." She told him, with a small fire.

"Oh really? I wonder if that armour of yours has ever handled fire like mine." He shot back.

He then lunged forwards, long streams of fire leaping from his hands, before crashing together. Erza struggled to block then quickly attacked, which he wasn't able to block. Natsu noticed that it was about to cut his scarf and twisted so his arm got cut instead. Erza raised an eyebrow at this, but didn't have time to comment because he set his whole body on fire. He rushed towards her, already knowing that she'd duck his punch and strike from the side, so he blocked the blow and whispered in her ear.

"You're holding back."

Erza stared at him. "So are you."

He looked at her then shrugged. "How about we both go full power?"

She nodded. "Very well."

There was a flash of light and Erza was left in her terrifying Purgatory armour. Natsu was surrounded by scarlet, roaring flames. In fact, they were so thick and bright, no one could see the dragon scales on his skin.

The two ignored the gasps of the crowd and charged towards each other, attacks ready. The resulting explosion left a massive crater and two people struggling to stand.

"How... About we call this a draw?" Erza panted.

"Yeah." Natsu gasped for breath.

"Natsu!" Lucy rushed forwards, hugging the dragon slayer. "That was amazing, you nearly beat Erza!"

"Yeah well... I tried." Natsu laughed weakly. Erza was getting help from the Master. Everyone was clapping and ignoring the thoughts of what all the damage was going to cost. Well, except Makarov, but he was always thinking of all the bills and angry letters.

"Hey Lucy." He had walked up to the blonde after the crowds had dissapeared. "How did the job go, damage wise?" He asked weakly.

"Actually, other than several pitfall traps, which we warned the villagers about, there was nothing to worry about." The girl said brightly.

With that, Makarov started to cry. With relief.

"Typical." Lucy sighed.

* * *

"Hmm, a human town?" Rogue asked.

"Yes, it appears so. I hope that we don't have to take him back by force." Cobra sighed.

"Oh come on, this is _Natsu_. Of course he's going to make it as difficult as possible." Laxus groaned, face palming.

"We _are_ going to get him back." Wendy insisted.

"And if he resists, we get to fight him." Sting said brightly, making Gajeel smirk.

"In which case, I really hope that he resists."

"Moron." Laxus scoffed.

* * *

Zeref let out a long breath as he stared at the twinkling lights of Magnolia. This was the place that held so many memories for him. Where he met Mavis, the small girl who searched for faries, and had become his friend, despite his dark heart. Where he had finally talked to Happy, after the Exeed left him in a rage after he became corrupted by power. The place where broken people gathered to mend. Home of the Fairy Tail guild.

Once he thought about it, it seemed fitting that he'd have to come here, to get Natsu back. He didn't allow himself to fear, he'd trained to kill dragons, not humans, and what were mortals compared to the huge scaled beasts? So he resolved there and then that he wouldn't leave without Natsu, unaware of people who had just promised the same thing.

* * *

And lastly, Lucy had realised that Natsu would possibly want to go back to the dragons, for whatever reason. Her worst fears had been comfirmed when she found the map that he'd hidden among the small pile of his belongings. He'd carefully marked the area that the dragon civil war was in, and several routes were marked in different colours. Yet the lines were shaky, as if his hand was trembling while he marked the points. As if he didn't really want to go. So she too, resolved that she wouldn't lose Natsu Dragneel.

Happy had also thought along those lines, but he knew about Zeref. He was scared that things would get ugly, but he knew there was one thing. He wasn't going to be separated from his best friend again, not if he could help it. Not to mention, Fairy Tail was a family and they were hardly likely to let one of their own go, were they?

Meanwhile, Natsu slept, unaware of the conflict surrounding him...


	9. Chapter 9

Wendy dropped into the house through the window and shattered the glass with a single swipe. The rest of the group followed her in, and searched silently through the piles of paper. Eventually, Rogue found the pile of objects covered in Natsu's scent.

"Over here!" He called quietly. The dragon slayers gathered around the pile. It was very small and it didn't take them long to find the map.

"Well, it looks like he was planning on coming back anyway." Wendy said, relieved.

"I wouldn't be too sure, there are several crumpled spots, and another scent, fresh, so I doubt that Salamander knows about it." Gajeel grunted.

"Well, all we can do is follow his scent and drag him back if we have to." Sting sighed.

"Yeah, come on, the sooner this is over, the better." Laxus agreed.

* * *

Zeref strode towards the guild, knowing where he was going and ignoring the strange looks. Just a little longer and he'd finally have his little brother back.

* * *

Natsu sat in the guild talking to Lucy, mostly arguing about the jobs.

"Why can't we do fighting?" He whined.

"Because we did that last time, and I think translating these runes sounds interesting." She snapped.

"But the pay isn't even that good." He argued. He stiffened and turned slowly, not listening to whatever she said. He had smelt them, and wanted to get out before they hurt his new friends. He could handle going back, just so long as the guild didn't get hurt. He had no doubt that they'd destroy the guild.

He was partly proven correct when the doors were blown off their hinges.

"Give us Natsu Dragneel." Gajeel bellowed. Natsu fought off the urge to go and smack Gajeel in the face, but that could result in a fight that would destroy the guild, especially if they both went full power.

"I'm here." Natsu said loudly, stepping to the front of the crowd.

"Good. You're coming back, got it? Only you would be stupid enough to join a human guild." Gajeel sneered.

"Yeah, I get it, I'll go back, whatever. Don't call them stupid." Natsu snapped.

"Oh dear, you actually care." Sting complained.

"Natsu, what is all this about?" Erza asked, requiping into her Black Wing armour and turning to face the dragon slayers.

"You haven't even told them what you are? Pathetic." Sting laughed.

"Atcually, _I_ know, and it doesn't matter one bit. Natsu isn't a monster." Lucy said firmly, stepping up beside him.

"Aye." Happy agreed, floating beside them.

"We don't care about the past, we look to the future." Levy stated.

"Natsu isn't a bad person." Juvia stated.

"Yeah, Flame-brain is staying here." Gray snarled.

"Okay, how about this. Natsu is one of the dragon slayers." Gajeel said, smirking at Natsu.

"Woah! He's kidding, right?" Gray laughed. Natsu slowly shook his head.

"That. Is. Awesome!" Gray cheered, making the rest of the guild smile.

"Guess what? That doesn't matter. Natsu is staying here." Erza stared at them.

"So, has what we judged was going to be one fight turned into many?" Sting asked.

"Seems like it. Good." Gajeel laughed.

"Guys, stop. I'll come back, just don't hurt them." Natsu cried.

"No way in hell." Lucy said firmly, taking his hand.

"How have you gone so soft, Salamander? You used to be so strong, killing without a second thought."

Natsu froze for a second before saying quietly. "I know. I never want to do that again, but I'll come back. Just stop."

"We're not going down without a fight." Erza announced, reading her sword.

"Strangely enough, neither are we." Wendy said, speaking softly yet with no trace of doubt.

Natsu looked torn as the other Dragon Slayers went into Dragon Force and Fairy Tail readied their attacks. Finally, he went into Dragon Force, getting several curious glances.

"Question is, who are you fighting for?" Gajeel asked.

"He doesn't know." Cobra announced.

"Way to state the obvious." Natsu hissed. He was curious as to why Laxus hadn't joined in.

Laxus was staring around the guild in confusion, slapping a hand to his forehead. Natsu knew this... It was the memory spell.

"Laxus-" He started to say but was cut off by the war cry of both sides.

* * *

Wendy glared at Lucy, whereas Lucy looked suprised.

"Don't tell me you think I'm too young to be a dragon slayer." Wendy snarled.

"No, I just thought you'd rather be backing up your friends other than fighting, you keep glancing at them and your magic flares up." Lucy reasoned, holding her whip tightly.

"Normally, you'd be correct." Wendy admitted. "But tell me, why do you want Natsu to stay? I want my big brother back, but you? What do you want?" She asked, eyes narrowed.

"I don't want to lose my best friend." Lucy said honestly.

"That's a lie, he means more to you than that, I can tell. You love him like I do, but it's a different kind of love." Wendy realised.

"Whatever. I guess this means that neither of us are willing to lose." Lucy clutched Loke's key. She hoped this would work.

"Yes, I supoose it does. Either way, I'm glad you're fighting for a good reason." Wendy was already in dragon force, but her magic power increased.

Gajeel would never admit how annoying it was to fight this Shrimp and her red headed friend. Whatever he magic was, it was annoying. The small girl summoned ink to cover his face, so he was fighting blind. This wouldn't be a problem if she didn't also make strong smelling words hover near him, so he couldn't smell anyone. His hearing was no use. He had to rely on his instincts alone, so he only blocked half of the swordswoman's hits, and they hurt like hell, even with his dragon force.

Juvia and Gray were fighting Cobra. Juvia seemed to be able to dilute his poison but they were already covered in gashes. Cobra was getting bored, he could read their thoughts and their attacks never even touched him. Rolling his eyes, he decided to get it over and done with, sending a powerful attack straight at the one that smelt cold. The ice shield shattered and he was blown backwards, and immediately clutched his chest as the poison started its work.

"GRAY-SAMA!" Juvia screamed. She turned on Cobra, who was dazed from the sheer volume of her yell, not to mention the high pitch. She caged him in a Water Lock **(A/N Really can't remember the name of that attack -_-... Sorry ^^,)** amd rushed to Gray's side.

Sting and Rogue had the misfortune of fighting Natsu.

"Seriously? I can beat you both without dragon force." Natsu groaned. "Give up before I have to hurt you."

Of course, they didn't listen and charged at him anyway. They were both defeated quite quickly and Natsu's injuries weren't that serious. He started to look for Laxus again and covered his ears just in time.

* * *

"Enough!" Laxus thundered. Everyone froze.

"Look, can someone just take me to the Master of this guild?" He ordered.

"I can do that." Mira said, beckoning him with a finger. "He's probably burried underneath his paperwork."

She lead him up the stairs at the corner of the guild and through several halls, until they came to a halt at a smartly painted door. Mira knocked and there was a call from the office.

"Yes?" The voice was tired but unmistakable.

"Master, someone is here to see you!" Mira called sweetly.

There was a quiet groan of swear words that were almost silent, unless you happened to be a dragon slayer. Laxus' mouth twitched.

"Come in."

Laxus didn't need to be told twice, stepping into a room, with a desk that was groaning under the pile of papers that were stacked on top of it.

"Hello, Grandfather."

"L-Laxus?"


	10. Chapter 10

Makarov stared at his Grandson in shock.

"What? How? You... They told me you died!" He sobbed, hugging Laxus.

"Well, I'm not dead, so whoever told you that can go..." Laxus trailed off, figuring that he probably shouldn't finish that sentence.

"My boy, whatever happened to you?" Makarov asked, blowing his nose.

"Well... Ever heard of the dragon slayers?" Laxus asked slowly.

"No... They didn't make you into one of those, did they?" Makarov gasped.

"Yeah, I'm their leader. There are seven of us overall... Say, do you actually run this guild?"

"Wow... And yes, I'm in charge of all these brats..."

"Well, speaking of brats, you seem to have taken in one of mine."

"What? Natsu... So that's why he wouldn't talk... Oh my god, what has happened to you? Normally, I wouldnt force anyone to say anything, but this seems so much worse now... Oh God, you're all just kids, so young. Please tell me, I can help, I need to know." He finished quietly.

"A lot of things have happened since you saw me as a kid, want the list?"

"I'm fairly sure that you didn't frown so much as a kid. Sure, I want to hear _everything_."

Laxus shuddered. "Electra... Don't tell her I said anything. Whatever, good to see you see you again, Gramps."

"Yes, I don't intend of letting you out of my sight again."

* * *

The guild had clumped together in clusters of talking people. Most were really excited from the fights that went on, and were way too happy.

"Cobra, that poison could've been fatal!" Wendy scolded as she healed Gray.

"What? Wasn't it a fight to the death?" He grumbled.

"No killing." She insisted, and moved onto the next wounded person.

For the second time that day, someone unknown marched through the doors.

"Oh good, you've already fought each other. This certainly makes thing easier." Someone said quietly.

Everyone looked up to see someone smiling at them. He waved a hand and everyone was pinned to the wall with dark magic, and despite how much they struggled, their bonds wouldn't budge. Everyone except Natsu. One the stranger had seen him, he was released. Natsu stared at the boy and frowned.

"You... Wait, you're-" He gasped, clutching a hand to his head at the sudden memories.

"Hm, so you do have a memory spell cast on you, that's unfortunate, but I have something that can take care of that." He sighed, waving a hand. There was a flash and Natsu slumped to the floor.

"What are you doing?" Lucy and Wendy screamed. The stranger walked up to the sleeping dragon slayer and picked him up, carrying him over his shoulder.

"Stop this Zeref!" Happy warned. The name made all the guild mages flinch. The dark mage looked back at the Exeed but said nothing.

"This won't solve anything." The cat cried desperately.

"On the contrary." Zeref said with a smile and suddenly the Dragneel brothers had vanished into thin air.

* * *

The second they were released, Gajeel let out a long stream of very rude words. Most of the guild members, suprisingly including Lucy and Erza soon joined in.

"What's a ******?" Wendy asked hopelessly.

"That," Loke announced, appearing out of no where. "is a ****** *** ******, see?"

"Thanks!" Wendy mumbled. "Wait, what's a ******* *****?"

"Aha!" The lion spirit pushed up his glasses, "I can tell you that!"

Alas, it was far too late before they realised they were corrupting Wendy. This of course, brought on more swearing. So, Makarov and Laxus stormed downstairs to a lot of swearing, and promtly exploded.

"So let me get this straight. You just sat there and swore instead of trying to find your comrade/guildmate!" They both yelled.

"There was no scent trail." Cobra announced miserably. "He vanished into thin air. From his thoughts, I'm guessing that he was Natsu's brother."

"Wait, the most evil wizard in the world is Natsu's brother?" Levy squeaked.

"Ask him. He knows, I can hear it." Cobra scowled, pointing to Happy.

"Thinking on it, you knew who Zeref was." Lucy murmured, turning to him.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Gray asked.

"It was back when I lived with Natsu and Zeref." He spat.

"You don't have to tell us..." Mira said softly.

"Yeah, well look where keeping secrets got me." Happy laughed bitterly.

* * *

 _(Flashback_ )

 _Happy laughed, flying out of Natsu's reach. The child pouted before giggling and climbing on top of one of the shelves in their tiny house and leaping at him. The two tumbled to the ground shrieking with laughter._

 _Zeref, having heard the thump rushed into the room, before seeing the boy and cat rolling around, laughing._

 _"Jeez, what am I going to do with the two of you." He said fondly, ruffling Natsu's hair and stroking Happy's ears._

 _"Play with us?" Natsu pleaded._

 _"I'm afraid I can't at the moment, bro. There's this thing on the radio telling us how far the dragons are from our village." Zeref sighed._

 _"Why do we live so close to the dragon war?" Happy squeaked._

 _"Because this village is our home. We won't leave until we have to. Besides, mum and dad's graves are here."_

 _"Oh... Are the dragons going to attack us?" Happy asked quietly._

 _"Nah, don't worry. They don't like humans, and if they do, I'll kill them." Natsu smiled. "Roar- I'm the scariest dragon ever!"_

 _"Eek, the scary dragon is after me!" Happy screeched. Zeref just shook his head and went back to the room with the battered radio, trying to ignore the thumps and screams from the other rooms._

 _"Guys, quick- we have to run!" Zeref yelled urgently._

 _"What? Why?" Happy flew as fast as he could to keep up with them._

 _"A dragon, it's coming. A shadow dragon..." Zeref gasped, tugging Natsu along faster. The villagers were running in front of them, yet the small family was clearly at the back._

 _There was a gigantic shadow lunging towards them._

 _A claw that was the colour of midnight appeared from the ground, grabbing Natsu as he slipped._

 _"Natsu- no!" Zeref screamed, reaching for his little brother's hand._

 _"Zeref... Help me, I'm scared." Natsu whimpered as the claw closed and pulled him underground._


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N Yeah, sorry, I had to use some OC dragons, especailly for the second generation dragon slayers.**

 **Once again, I don't own Fairy Tail.**

* * *

Natsu found himself floating, watching memories unfurl in his dreamlike state. He had no idea that was he had just seen was what Happy had described to the guild. _Am I going to have to sit through all my memories?_ He wondered, staring at the scene below him. He wanted to wake up and talk to Zeref.

 _Natsu had just blinked awake, eyes blank and he looked confused. He was surrounded by other kids that he didn't know. Then again, he couldn't think of anyone he did know, his mind felt all fuzzy. Soon enough, the other children blinked awake, and they all looked confused as each other._

 _"Who the heck are you guys?" A loud blonde one asked._

 _"That's what I was going to ask you." The dark haired boy next to him muttered._

 _"Does anyone remember anything?" This guy was bigger than all of them, and he looked older._

 _"...Not really." Natsu mumbled. The small girl next to him looked like she was about to cry. He hugged her._

 _"I'm Natsu, what's your name?" He asked her quietly._

 _"Wendy." She sniffed, rubbing her eyes._

 _"Don't worry." He said, smiling despite his panic. "We'll figure out what's going on. You'll see."_

 _"Ah, so you're awake!" A loud voice rumbled. The children span around to see several dragons staring at them, the one that spoke was massive, and covered in gleaming red scales, with a golden belly._

 _"Who are you?" Natsu asked, poking one of the dragon's claws._

 _"I'm Igneel, King of the Fire Dragons."_

 _The dragons beside Igneel introduced themselves._

 _"I'm Grandeeney, Queen of the Sky Dragons." A dragon with a nimble build and was covered in white feathers said, dipping her head._

 _"I'm Electra, Queen of the Lightning Dragons." A black dragon with glowing yellow markings said, and her voice sounded like she had little to no sense of humour and took no nonsense from anyone. All the children shivered and edged closer together._

 _"My name is Metalicana, and I'm King of the Metal Dragons." The dragon's body was covered in gleaming metal scales and his eyes seemed to glare at them. Everyone could have sworn they heard Igneel cough 'tin can' but chose to ignore it._

 _"I am Queen of the Poison Dragons, I am called Viper." This dragon was covered in pink scales which eventually turned to a deep indigo at her paws. She spoke softly and her crimson eyes glittered merrily._

 _Next, the radiant white dragon spoke. "I am the King of the White Dragons, you may call me Weisslogia._

 _"And I am Skiadrum, I rule over the Shadow Dragons." The dragon covered in shadows rumbled._

 _"Why are you here?" Laxus asked, raising an eye brow._

 _"Well, we're going to teach you to be Dragon Slayers." Igneel said grandly, sweeping his tail and creating a wave of fire. He handn't noticed that Natsu had clambered up his leg and was clinging onto one of the spikes on his back._

 _"What's that?" Gajeel asked, scowling._

 _"We are going to teach you dragon magic so you can fight. Your purpose will be explained to you during your training. Do not make me repeat myself." Electra snapped._

 _"A-Aye..." Everyone, even the dragons stammered, although the dragons seemed to be mocking her._

 _"So, now we need to decide who will be teaching who." Grandeeney murmured, staring at the children._

 _"I think Igneel's already got a kid attached to him." Metalicana pointed out dryly._

 _Natsu was nearly at Igneel's head, and the fire dragon was laughing._

 _"Well that's me sorted. What's your name, kid?" Igneel asked happily._

 _"Natsu." He was suddenly shy._

 _"Nice, well, you're going to be my apprentice, how do you like fire?" The dragon boomed._

 _"Fire... It's pretty cool"_

 _"Good, 'cause you're going to be seeing a lot of it. In fact, you're going to learn Fire Dragon Slaying magic, how does that sound?"_

 _"Awesome!" Natsu cheered._

 _"Say goodbye to the others, we'd better leave now."_

 _"Bye guys, see you soon, don't worry Wendy!" He yelled, as Igneel took off and flew away._

 _"Did that... Really just happen?" Weisslogia asked no one._

 _"It would appear so. Now, I am going to chose my apprentice next." Electra announced briskly._

 _She stared at the group with narrowed amber eyes. She then moved so fast that none of them could see it and plucked up Laxus._

 _"Hm," she rumbled softly. "I like you, you've got that look in your eye. Yes, you'll do well with me."_

 _With that she vanished so quickly, her form seemed to blur and the group was left in silence. Then, despite what Natsu told her, Wendy began to cry._

The last thing that Natsu saw from that scene was Grandeeney putting a comforting wing around Wendy and talking to her comfortingly in hushed tones. Then it changed the memory changed to what Natsu remembered as fonder times.

* * *

 _"Natsu." Igneel complained. "If you ever wake me up like that again, I am seriously going to throw you into the volcano."_

 _Natsu's eyes widened and he said with completley false innocence. "But Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaad, Atlas Flame told me to do it."_

 _Igneel turned his glare to Atlas Flame, or rather, the speck in the sky that had become Atlas Flame, as he had flown to get away._

 _"Coward." Igneel muttered._

 _"He said he was hunting to get breakfast." Natsu supplied helpfully._

 _Igneel let out a low, angry growl. He then suddenly brightened. "Since this is our one day off training, want to prank Atlas Flame?"_

 _"Hell yeah!" Natsu laughed._

 _Well, Atlas Flame wasn't very happy when he came back to find his nest covered in rotting fish._

 _"Natsu!" He thundered. "If you ever do that again, I will throw you into the volcano!"_

 _"That threat is really overused." The child pointed out quietly. Then he let out a long whine. "But Uuuuuunnnnncle, Igneel told me to do it."_

 _"Why the little... That was my excuse!"_

* * *

The memory ended with all three of them laughing, before fading back into more memories of training. Natsu wondered how they were, the two dragons, the one who helped train him, and even Electra... He wondered if he'd ever see them again. He had hardly seen them in over a year, because he had been moved around on the battle field.

Groggily, he opened his eyes, pushing himself into a sitting position. It was night, and he was next to a roaring campfire.

Who he now remembered to be Zeref smiled at him. "Hello brother." He said in the same gentle voice that Natsu remembered.

 **A/N Me again, sorry, I seem to be doing a lot of these now... ^^,**

 **I'm really sorry about this, but I don't think I'll be able to continue with the daily updates, so I'll try to work out days that I'll update. Really sorry!**

 **-Indigo**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N Hi, I just want to clear some things up, since they're probably confusing...**

 **The dragon slayers were put under a memory spell but since dragons aren't very good with human magic, they remember some things, but not everything. If they come into contact with people they used to know, they will start to remember small things. However, Zeref used a spell on Natsu and removed the spell completely, so he remembers everything. Hope that clears it up for anyone who was confused. :D**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail, or the characters.**

Zeref walked around the campfire, after greeting his brother. He knelt down and asked quietly.

"How are you feeling?"

Natsu didn't respond but instead wrapped his arms around Zeref and hugged him, sobbing. Zeref's eyes filled with tears. He finally had his brother back, and he didn't think that he was a monster, at least not yet. So the Dragneel brothers stayed like that for a while, just hugging and crying.

Finally, Zeref spoke. "I'm sorry..."

Natsu stared at him. "For what?"

"Everything. Letting that dragon take you," Zeref couldn't meet his brother's eyes.

"There's nothing to be sorry for... You told me to run, but no one can out run a dragon. It wasn't your fault. If anyone should be sorry, it's me." Natsu admitted quietly.

"What? Why?" Zeref didn't think that his brother had anything to be sorry for.

"I forgot about you for one, I couldn't beat the memory spell, I forgot about you and Happy. Then I took part in all the fighting and killing as a dragon slayer." Now it was Natsu who couldn't meet Zeref's gaze.

"No, you didn't have a choice, not really. And Natsu, no one can beat a memory spell." Zeref sighed fondly.

"Yes, but..." Natsu found that he couldn't go on. There was another silence as the two stared at the campfire.

"Do you know," Zeref said so quietly that it was almost a whisper, "what I did in order to get the power to get you back?"

"No."

"I didn't care what I did, I needed to get stronger. One day, I stopped and looked behind me and saw all the death and suffering I caused and realised that Happy was right, that I was wrong and there were better ways to become strong. But I couldn't see them... So I carried on." Zeref found that he couldn't carry on. He couldn't bear the thought of his brother, the one person he loved, hating him.

"Well, it looks like the Dragneel family have done some pretty dark things." Natsu laughed bitterly.

"Yeah..." Zeref agreed. There was a long silence as the brothers stared at the fire.

"Maybe we should look to do better now, instead of hurting people, we should work on fixing things," Natsu suggested. Zeref paused and thought about it. While he could never stop the guilt that came with what he had done, he could maybe stop from doing any more damage.

"I think... I think that's a good idea. I know a group that'll probably let me join them. They also work quite closely with Fairy Tail, so we'll be able to see each other."

"But I want to stay with you!" Natsu argued.

"No, Fairy Tail will be good for you. Stay there. As your older brother, I order you to stay."

"Are you still as stubborn as you were? What was the year back then? Nevermind."

"Yes. I am."

"So there's no point in me arguing, is there?"

"Absolutely none at all."

"Fine... But I still want to stay with you. I don't want to lose you again!" Natsu started to cry. Zeref sniffed and hugged him again, and the two brothers sat there for a while, just hugging.

"Fairy Tail is the best way to fix your broken heart. Someone like me couldn't do that. You deserve happiness," Zeref said quietly.

"I... I don't want that. I want you," Natsu admitted.

"What about Happy, the blonde girl and the rest of the guild," Zeref whispered.

"Why can't we all be together again? Why does the world have to be so torn up and twisted?" Natsu cried.

"I'm not sure... You need to be strong Natsu. You'll see me again, don't worry."

"But I-"

"I'm going to teleport you back to your guild now."

"What about you? You can't be alone!"

"I told you, I'm going to find that group. Their base isn't that secret."

"Oh..."

"Oh, and Natsu, I know that one day, for whatever reason, you'll end up going back there, and when you do... Well, I made you a way out. It'll appear whenever you will it to, I made it like that."

"I... Thanks, bro."

"No problem. I'll be seeing you soon, Natsu."

"You better."

* * *

Zeref failed to mention that the teleportation might not put him on the ground, so Natsu found himself falling. The drop was ridiculously high, and Natsu could see pretty much all of Magnolia. He was fairly sure he could even make out Lucy's house.

"All we can do is wait." Makarov sighed. Everyone had had a meeting in the main room of the guild hall to discuss what to do about Natsu.

"Yeah," Gray groaned. "It's not like Flame-brain's just gonna drop in out of no-where."

Just then, there was a loud crash. Then another. And another. Finally, Natsu Dragneel fell through the ceilling and right in the middle of the circle with a loud thump.

"Oow..." He groaned, struggling to stand up. "That hurt."

"Natsu!" Happy rushed over. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. You guys might need a new roof. And several floors," he laughed sheepishly.

"What happened? Zeref kidnapped you!" The small cat cried.

"Relax, I'm fine. He just wanted a little chat, that's all." Natsu assured them.

"Little chat? He's one of the darkest mages Earthland has ever seen!" Makarov exclaimed.

"So, evil people aren't allowed to talk?" Natsu asked, thinking that the Master was serious. Everyone stared at him.

"What, so are they physically unable or are they not allowed." He continued.

"Oh my God, no, I never even... Where are you getting this from?" Makarov groaned.

"Because if evil people aren't supposed to talk because they were told not to, does that make us evil?" Natsu carried on.

Laxus, who had been breathing deeply with the effort of not slapping Natsu, finally snapped and knocked him out with a swift blow to the head.

"Dude," Gray yelled. "I get he was being annoying and all, but you just knocked him out!"

"Meh," Laxus shrugged. "He's annoyingly good at getting back up, so he'll be up in a couple of minutes. Besides, this isn't the first time one of us has snapped and done this and it certainly won't be the last."

Lucy, Happy, Gray, Erza, Levy, Jet, Droy and Juvia stared at the Dragon Slayers with varying levels of concern.

"Anyway, what was this about you not being able to talk. You definately didn't mention this." Makarov asked, eyes narrowed.

"Well it depends." Wendy piped up. "Our teachers and some dragons don't mind, but most of them and the Elders, really get bothered so we had to act emotionless in front of them, and only talk if they asked us something. We all did it." She finished with a sigh.

"Wait, even Natsu pulled that off? I highly doubt that." Gray muttered.

"One second, he'll wake up and then I'll make him show you." Laxus grunted.

"Oh wow, talking to the Elders must've been horrible." Levy winced.

"Well, there was one part to look forward to." Wendy admitted.

"Really, what?" Droy asked.

"Well, afterwards, the boys would say some really rude things about them, when we where about... erm... I don't know human measurements, sorry. But about 40 wingspans of a Wind Dragon away from them."

"Jeez, Wendy, it was more like 50." Sting grumbled.

"Wait, didn't you need to ask Loke about the swear words we used yesterday?" Jet asked.

"Oh no," Wendy shook her head. "Those were dragon swear words. There's a really big difference."

"Wait, who said the most?" Gray was suddenly interested.

"... Sorry, Rogue." The small girl admitted.

"Wait! Him?" Gray gasped. The Shadow Dragon slayer had been very quiet since arriving at the guild.

"Hey, Laxus, what the hell?" Natsu exploded.

The Lightning Dragon slayer gave him a look that silenced Natsu then leaned over and whispered something in his ear, making the Fire Dragon slayer go pale.

"Got it?" He snarled.

"Aye..."

"Right, since you doubt us, we're all going to act like we're facing the elders and you're going to ask us questions, got it? "

"Oh good," Jet smirked. "This is going to be fun."


	13. Chapter 13

The seven Dragon Slayers faced the crowd of guild members, expressions blank and eyes dull and emotionless.

"Alright then, I'll start." Gray announced. "What is the name of one of the elders?"

"Delta." Sting answered, voice flat. There wans't even a trace of anything in his tone.

"Alright then, what is your favourite activity?" Erza asked.

"Flying with Grandeeney." Wendy said dully, it was actually disturbing to see someone so young looks so heartless.

"Erm, let's see... Gajeel, have you ever looked in a mirror, ever, in your entire existance?" Jet asked, earning a slap from Levy.

"Don't be rude." She hissed.

Suprisingly, the Iron Dragon slayer didn't even twitched. "No, mirrors are hard to come by on either the battlefield or the mines where the metal dragons live."

"If you don't mind, why do you have so many piercings?" Levy asked shyly.

"They are a sign of bravery and honour among Metal Dragons."

"Alright! My turn!" Happy butted in. He thought for a moment. "Hmm, who's Acnologia?"

At this, the composure of all seven Dragon Slayers shattered. Laxus made a choked noise, Sting and Rogue's eyes widened. Cobra frowned. Gajeel and Natsu made a noise halfway between a snarl and a whine and Wendy flinched. There was something in their eyes, an emotion that the wizards and Exeed alike had never seen before. Fear.

"Okay, here's a question for you. How in hell do you know that name?" Laxus snarled, electricity sparking around him.

"Uh... Natsu had a nightmare and was screaming." Happy stammered.

Almost at once the Dragon Slayers turned to Natsu, but they all looked concerned.

"Ouch, that must've been tough." Cobra sighed.

"I'm sorry!" Wendy squeaked.

"Man, that was probably terrifying." Sting groaned.

"Are you okay? Which parts of... Well, you know, was it?" Laxus asked, voice betraying his concern.

"I'm fine, and it was the final part. Can we please stop talking about it now? If we carry on much longer, we'll all have nightmares." Natsu muttered.

"Are we supposed to be hearing this?" Juvia asked.

"No. Stop listening." Rogue said without turning around.

"No, but seriously, who are they?" Happy asked again.

This time, it was Gajeel who turned and answered him. "Don't. Just don't. None of us want to or are able to talk about it. Not in detail. Drop it if you want to carry on living." He glared, red eyes pratically glowing with his anger and fear.

"Aye..." Happy trailed of miserably.

"Hey," Natsu defended his friend. "No need to snap at him, he won't ask again."

"Whatever." Gajeel grunted, turning away. "Speaking of people messing up..." He turned slowly turned to Jet, smirking. "You ready to take that comment from eariler back?" The speed mage gulped. Somehow, everyone got sucked into the fighting, and it started another brawl... At least Wendy was willing to heal everyone afterwards. Even the Master's headache when he realised all the paperwork he had to deal with.

* * *

"Have you all got a place to stay?" Erza asked randomly.

"No, can't we just all find a tree?" Cobra shrugged.

"Apparently not." Natsu told them.

"What? What's wrong with trees?" Laxus asked, sounding genuinely confused.

"You know what, you can all stay at Fairy Hills, as Natsu already has a place to stay, there are enough rooms."

"I want to stay with Natsu..." Wendy mumbled.

"That's okay, I have enough room for you as well." Lucy told her.

"Thank you!" Wendy cried, hugging Lucy.

"No problem, the more the merrier!" Lucy smiled.

"No, seriously. Why can't we just find a tree?" Laxus muttered.

* * *

Eventually, the groups left for wherever they were staying, but Lucy had to go and get something from one of the rooms in the guild, and Natsu and Wendy were left alone.

"Humans are nicer than I thought." She said quietly.

"Yeah, I know but..." Natsu sighed.

"But?" Wendy repeated, tone questioning.

"In the end, it'll make it harder to go back." He admitted.

"Yes, but what choice do we have?" Wendy agreed sadly.

* * *

Somewhere, in a dark place, a creature hissed in pain. Slowly, it slid over to the lake nearby and stared at its reflection. Tears made the surface ripple and the image was distorted and lost. There was a whimpering sound as it coiled up underneath a bush. It peered at the stars through the tangle of leaves above it, wondering if anything would ever be all right again.

Somewhere, a small white cat flew frantically through the shadows, desperate to tell her friend what she had seen. The girl that she had failed to protect, laughing... With her. So, she was out there somewhere, and she needed to be found. Yet she had also seen the friend she was flying towards now, with someone else and they seemed to be friends, so it was her duty.

Meanwhile, a white haired girl looked up at the stars, running a thumb over a golden key. She looked at the small beads of light, so soothing yet far away. The sheer beauty and number of them just made her feel more lonely than ever. Closing her eyes, she wondered when her luck became so bad.

Another girl threw a monster away from her with a smirk. She was in the middle of a dark woods, yet there wasn't a trace of fear in her gaze. She'd had to pick herself up when she was broken and learn to walk alone. So she grew more powerful and decided that she'd never need someone else ever again.

People burst into a room, to see their guildmate thrashing around and screaming. They eventually woke the girl up and she apologized for causing them worry, making them shake their heads fondly and leave the room. The small girl wondered if she'd ever see her friend again.

All these people had someone precious taken from them by the dragons, and had to walk alone. They had each moved on, but they had not forgotten those they were forced to leave behind.


	14. Chapter 14

The weeks practically flew by, the dragons slayers started to really fit in at the guild, and soon became great friends with a lot of people. Well, Jet and Droy soon found they had a problem with Gajeel, which was definately, surely, unrelated from the fact that Levy had become one of his closest friends.

"Natsu, for the last time, can you at least try not to blow up one of the buildings?" Lucy scolded the dragon slayer.

"Oops, sorry Lucy, but it's too easy." He laughed sheepishly.

"Yeah, well... It cost us half our rent money," she groaned.

"I said I was sorry." He muttered.

"Idiot," she laughed fondly.

"Weirdo." He shot back.

"Stop flirting, at least until I have a sick bucket," Happy pleaded.

* * *

Cobra had gone on a solo mission. He liked just listening camly listening to the thoughts of other people as he wondered around or fought. While he missed working with his friends, he also enjoyed the independance. This particular village had said something about a curse, so he figured that he may as well try and do something. He had learned how to pretend to be normal much quicker that the rest of the dragon slayers, as he could hear people's thoughts and learn how to fit in much quicker. He knew what people expected to see, and how to act to fit those expectations.

The villagers were happy to see someone acting cheerful and friendly, keeping up a positive attitude and promising to help them. In that sense, both humans and dragons were similar, he could fool most of them easily. Yet the elders, and other Poison Dragons could see right through his act, as he couldn't read their thoughts. Then there were humans, like the white-haired bar maid, the requip mage and the old man. They all seemed powerful and quick witted. He never quite knew how to act around them...

Even now, he was listening, needing something to tell him how to act. Yet everything was silent, there was only the simple thoughts of small animals that scurried around, and he may as well not have heard those.

There was a nice breeze, ruffling the leaves in the trees and it was refreshing. Faintly, he could smell the water of a lake, and even from here, he could tell it was cool and pure. He let his mind wander, simply enjoing the scenery. He figured that now was as good as time as any to think of the memories that sat in lonely silence in his head. A voice... Female. It sounded like she was laughing, saying a name...

This was the embarassing thing. The memory spell made him forget his own name, so Viper had given him one, and one to be proud of. So he stopped being whoever the nameless boy was and became Cobra, a dragon slayer. He had nothing else to go back to, so he focused more on beginings rather than endings.

So, he almost missed the sad, sorrowful voice that haunted him at nights, when there wasn't a figure looming over him, holding his life in its hands.

 _Help me..._

It was that voice, without a doubt. Something was different about it, but that didn't matter at the moment. All that mattered was that his past, almost faded away, was so close. He could feel the memories blossoming in his mind.

 _"Hey, Erik. Look at the sky!" A happy voice called. Rolling his eyes, the boy looked at the sky. It looked like someone had taken an orange canvas and applied streaks of gold and pink, twisting them together until there was a perfect blend._

 _"It sure it beautiful, right?" She giggled. He nodded absently, eyes wide with awe. The girl smiled softly and slipped her hand into Erik's._

 _"Lets watch the sunsets together forever, okay?" She said seriously._

 _"I... Where are you pulling all this from, Kinana?" The boys stuttered, blushing. But a second later, he squeezed her hand._

 _"I promise."_

"I promised." Cobra muttered to himself, running frantically to where he head the voice.

He burst into the clearing, her name leaving his lips. "Kinana!" He cried, looking around wildly, until his eyes landed on a purple snake.

"Oh... I'm so, so sorry." He sank to his knees and wrapped the snake in a hug. "I remember."

They stayed there like that in silence for a while, until a tiny voice asked in his mind.

 _E-Erik? Is that really you? I thought you were taken by a dragon... A-and... And I thought I'd never see you again!_

Cobra stroked the snake's smooth scales. trying to ease her pain, as she had just started crying. "It is me... I was taken by a dragon, but I can tell you that later. Yeah, for a long time, I thought that I'd never see you again, Kinana."

 _I-I'm so happy to see you again, Erik! And you can hear me! I thought I was going to be alone forever..._

"Don't worry," he promised. "I'll make sure you're never lonely again."

 _...So you're not going to leave me? Really?_

"I made a promise, didn't I? We're going to watch more sunsets together." With those words, both snake and dragon slayer turned to the sky. Underneath that sky, it was like all those years never really happened, like one of them one wasn't cursed and the other had clean hands.

* * *

He left with Kinana, saying that he would break the curse at his guild with a reasurring smile to the village, blushing from the praise he got for finding the beast and the chatter from Kinana about how he'd remained so nice. So, he'd save telling her for another day.

Another welcome change was that she didn't mind them walking, as it turned out that she didn't care much for transport either. So they'd talk and laugh. The gap between them kept getting smaller and smaller, until it may not have existed at all.

 _Thanks for staying with me Erik, and I know what you are. You shouldn't have tried to hide it, silly dragon slayer._

Cobra froze. "I'm sorry." He looked at the ground, unable to meet the Kinana's eyes.

 _No, I can see why you hid it. I saw the newspaper, and recognised you. I'm glad you're alive..._

"Thank you, for not hating me. I just didn't want to be lonely." He said quietly.

 _That's fine... I know the feeling. How about another promise, Erik? How about we never let each other be lonely._

"Sure thing! I promise." He said, with a smile. A real one, because somehow, the girl could see right through him, and somehow, he didn't want to lie to her.

"You know, one day, I'm going to get you back to normal." He said, patting her head.

 _I really hope so..._

"Cool, you're back. Who's the snake?" Natsu asked, running up to his friend.

"This is Kinana, someone from before. She was cursed." Cobra explained quietly, but everyone seemed to hear him.

"Aww, don't worry, we'll break the curse soon!" Mira assured the snake, smiling.

"I'll start researching right away." Levy said hurridly, rushing to the guild's archives.

 _Thank you..._

"See?" Cobra smiled. "I told you that everything would be fine."

 _I know... Thank you!_

If only she knew like he did, that nothing could be fine. Now that he'd healed his heart, it'd only be broken again whenever he went back.

* * *

The dragon slayers met on a cliff nearby Magnolia. It was night time and silent, aside from their hushed voices.

"We have to go back soon. Who knows what will happen if we don't." Laxus sighed.

"I don't want to..." Cobra's voice cracked, betraying all the sadness and sorrow that he had bottled up.

"I know, but we have a duty." Natsu sounded as torn as he felt, and no one could bare to look at him.

They were so caught up in the mess their life, that they didn't notice the shape speeding towards them.

With a loud thump that made them turn around, magic at the ready, a sky dragon landed.

Wendy recognised her at once. "Ariel!" she cried, rushing forwards.

"Thank the heavens I found you." The sky dragon panted, voice tired.

"Why? What's wrong?" Wendy gasped. The female dragon looked close to tears.

When she spoke, her voice was raw and heavy with fear, "Igneel. The King of the Fire Dragons was attacked by that other slayer. Acnologia."


	15. Chapter 15

"What? What happened?" Natsu demanded. His voice showed how worried he was, and his eyes were wild with a strange light.

"I... No one knows. Atlas Flame says that they were fighting him, and that they lost and Igneel was losing a lot of blood. Grandeeney herself is healing him, but no one else is allowed... I..." The dragon sobbed.

"Acnologia." Natsu snarled. All traces of fear were gone. "I'm going to make him pay, a hundred, no a million times for this."

"You know the price, right?" Laxus warned.

"Yes, and I don't care. Igneel was... Igneel is still my father." Natsu said, eyes blazing with a furious fire.

"That spell... You can't mean the forbidden one that Acnologia uses?" Ariel screamed.

"I'm afraid we do... Natsu, I will be right beside you." Wendy vowed, nodding sadly.

"Please- you can't! The price!" Ariel begged.

"Well, I'm not abou to let you two go in alone." Laxus grunted.

"Hey Ariel, can you relay this message to the elders? 'If we end up like Acnologia, kill us.'" Cobra said darkly.

"Yeah, but there's a chance the spell won't do that." Rogue reasoned.

"But we'll find out either way." Sting agreed, eyes for once not brimming with laughter, but completely serious.

"Just give us until morning." Gajeel grunted. "Reckon you can fly us back? It'll be quicker."

"I really don't want to, but I can." Ariel sighed. "Good luck with whatever you want to do."

* * *

Lucy knew something was wrong the second she woke up. Her apartment was too quiet, no snoring or quiet snuffles. She hoped with all her heart that they were at the guild and even skipped breakfast, just to go and check. Her stomach twisted as she found everyone miserable or crying. There was a slight slithering noise as Kinana entered through doors she left open.

"What happened?" She asked, voice ringing out, riddled with anxiety.

In answer the Master held up a lacrima.

At once, the orb flared to life and Laxus' voice started to speak.

 _"Alright, there's no way to sugar coat this. We- the dragon slayers- have to go back. We don't really want to, there are people we want to stay with but... Well..."_

Then Natsu started to speak.

 _"Acnologia, the name we try to avoid speaking has attacked Igneel. We don't know if he's dead or alive, but one thing is certian. We need to destroy Acnologia. He... Acnologia is a dragon slayer like us, but he fights for the other side, just for the killing, and in order to even get near his level... We have to use a spell that we've never used before, so there's no telling what will happen."_

Gajeel spoke gruffly and fast. _"So we're going to fight him, and we probably won't be able to come back. At all. So, we're sorry, but we're happy we met you."_

The rest of the dragon slayers carried on with their goodbyes, but Lucy stopped listening. Gone... They had left her. Natsu was gone. She was alone again... No, she wouldn't lose Natsu like she lost her mother, she was going to find him before he slipped away again.

"Lucy." The Master sighed. "We can't go after them."

"Yes we can." She insisted. "We're Fairy Tail. Are we really about to let some of our family members leave?" She asked pleadingly.

"I, for one, am going back to get them." Erza announced.

"Same." Gray nodded.

"Where Gray-sama goes, Juvia will follow. Juvia hopes that they're all right." She said worridly.

"I'm in." A new voice spoke. Everyone turned round to stare at the girl. She had short purple hair, and was wearing a dress that matched the exact colour of the snake's scales. "I'm Kinana." She explained shyly.

"How did the curse break?" Levy asked curiously. Everyone decided to leave it alone, once the girl's cheeks became pink... Something told them that it had something to do with Cobra and while it would be excellent blackmail, it was a sore topic.

"Well, are we going after them or not?" Gray asked.

"Yeah. For Fairy Tail!" Lucy cried.

"So. COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!" Came the scream of a reporter from behind them. Everyone turned around slowly.

"How long has he been there?" The Master asked, gesturing to Jason, the... Fangirling reporter.

"Oh my, you really had the _Dragon Slayers_ in your guild! What were they like, how strong were they? Did they have emotions? What happened? It's so COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!" He sung.

"Clearly a while." Gray responded. "Does anyone have a gag?" He groaned.

"Juvia can knock him out if Gray-sama wishes." Juvia offered, summoning water.

"Actually..." Gray looked thoughtful.

"Don't you dare." The Master bellowed.

"So COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!"

"On second thoughts." The Master muttered.

"Juvia is still more that willing."

"So COOOOOOOOOOOOL!"

"Go for it." The Master said quickly. "We need peace and quiet while we plan."

"So we're going?" Lucy asked hopefully.

"Yes, for our family... And to get away from Jason." Makarov confessed.

"So COOOOOOOOOOO- gah! So cool, I'm being attacked by a- gah. Real- Fairy Tail- ow! Mage!" He cried, as Juvia started slashing at him with water attacks.

 **A/N Yeah, sorry for the short chapter, but I'm going to include a lot of things in the next few chapters and there's going to be a bit of a time skip, say a couple of days, and with the way I'm going to write it, it won't really work if I try to have it all in one chapter. Sorry!**


	16. Chapter 16

Admittably, it took them several days to work out a route and the supplies they'd need, so Fairy Tail was a bit behind... Not to mention that the whole world now knew about the dragon slayers, thanks to Jason's live broad-casting lacrima.

There were a lot of people interested. Most of them wished them luck and cheered them on... However, dark guilds wanted to claim the dragon slayers for themselves... It was going to be messy, as they were also preparing to make a wild dash for the dragon civil war.

"Alright, we're finally reaady!" Makarov announced. "Any questions?"

He didn't really expect anyone to answer. Everyone knew the plan to meet up with Jellal's illegal guild, who apparently had a new member, and a strong one at that. Erza was looking forward to it, well, Mira thought so and teased her relentlessly.

"So COOOOOOOOOOOL! Can I get and interview?" Jason cried.

"For the love of... No!" Makarov groaned.

"E-Excuse me? Can I join you?" A timid voice asked. Everyone turned to stare at the white haired girl. "Sorry, I'm Yukino. I... Sorry, one of the dragon slayers looks like someone I used to know and I wanted to help out for once." She stammered.

"Okay, Yukino. What magic do you use?" Makarov asked kindly.

"I'm a Celestial Mage." Yukino said quietly, showing them her keys. There were several gasps at the sight of three gold keys.

"That's cool! You're just like Lushie!" Happy laughed, swooping over their heads.

"In which case, you are more than welcome to join us, since you're a wizard, you'll be able to defend yourself. Well, we're not hanging about, we don't want anyone like Jason turning up." Makarov declared hurridly.

"Aye!" The group cheered. Including Jason. With that, the mages sped off, leaving the reporter muttering something about the world being really cool.

* * *

The place they met Jellal and his group was in the middle of nowhere and looked very dull. It was typical but it caused groans every time.

"Hello, Fairy Tail." Jellal greeted. Erza smiled slightly.

"Jellal. All of your guild is coming to help us?" Makarov asked, suprised.

"Don't act like there are so many of us." Ultear muttered.

"Anyway, is it true that we're travelling to the grounds of the dragon civil war?" The blue haired man asked.

"Yes, I'm sorry that you weren't filled in before hand, but it was too risky to use a lacrima." The Master sighed. He pretended not to notice how the new member of Jellal's guild straightened when he mentioned the dragon civil war. In fact, he had no clue as to who the guy was, but he didn't think it was anyone good.

"That's fine, you can fill us in as we travel." Jellal suggested and the group carried on walking. Again, the new member lingered close to the Master and Jellal as they spoke, but when he noticed Makarov glancing at him, he backed off.

* * *

Happy flew to the back of the group. He hovered by the new guy, who he knew to be Zeref. The dark mage was wearing a large black cloak so no one could see him. However, Happy wasn't stupid.

"How the hell did Natsu convince you to join a light guild?" Happy hissed. Everyone was busy exchanging stories, catching up or working on plans to notice them. Well, Lucy was sticking near the back and looking sad, but Happy was too busy questioning Zeref to comfort her.

"That doesn't concern you." Zeref muttered.

"Yes it does." Happy insisted. "You kidnapped him and then suddenly joined a light guild?"

"I'm not going to say anything to you. You made it clear you wanted nothing more to do with me anyway." Zeref snapped.

"Excuse me? Who are you?" Lucy asked, suprising them both. It turned out that she wasn't as lost in thought as they guessed.

"I'm-" Zeref paused and looked around, checking that no one else was listening.

"My name is Zeref Dragneel." He sighed.

"Natsu's brother, huh?" Lucy murmured. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise, who are you?" He asked politely.

"Lucy. Natsu's friend." She explained, ignoring Happy's quiet wail of 'traitor!'

"So, you're not going to attempt to kill me because I... Took Natsu for some, uh, bonding time without asking?" He asked.

"Nice wording." She admitted. "And no, I can see why you did it. Sort of."

"Well, this has turned out better than I thought. You don't want me dead and we're going to save my brother. Say, did he mention what he was going to do?"

"Something about Igneel being attacked by Acnologia and using some spell to stop him." Lucy shrugged.

Zeref flinched. "Did he say which spell?" He asked slowly.

"No, why?" Lucy blinked.

"Well, I researched a lot of dragon magic- you'd be suprised and there are some spells..." Zeref trailed off uncomfortably.

"Oh. I see..." Lucy said quietly. "So you think that there's a chance that they're all in some horrible danger."

"I think that it's a possibility. In fact, knowing luck and life we're probably in for a lot of trouble." Zeref sighed.

"Yeah. I think you're right." Lucy said sadly. "Life _does_ seem to be pretty unfair."

The next two days were full of walking. The landscape slowly changed from plains to rubble and dry earth. The land had be torn up by attacks, both old and new. They had yet to see a real, breathing, dragon. They had encountered several bodies, still and umoving, in pools of blood. Nobody really wanted to look and see how they'd been killed. Nobody voiced their fear. That the dragon slayers had done it. Out here, everything looked so real, so harsh, and nobody wanted to think that the people in their guild, that they held so close to their hearts could have done it. That the dragon slayers had another side to them, hidden by smiles and friendship.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N Hey, guess what? Here's a chapter! :D As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail... Hope you all enjoy!**

It didn't take the group long to find the people they were looking for. There had been several loud explosions from nearby and a figure had been sent flying towards them. At first they didn't recognise Rogue because of the black scales that covered his skin, looking like a midnight fever on his normally pale skin. Almost instantly, another shape streaked after him, pale hair flying in a long wild mane. They could see the glowing blue markings on his skin and the crazy glint in his eyes.

Suddenly Sting was in front of Rogue, white scales glowing as he prepared a sheild spell. Acnologia paused for a split second to shatter his defense with a single swipe. That pause was all they needed, as Natsu and Gajeel, also covered in scales, dived in with an attack, fists covered in flames and a metallic sheen respectively. The unknown man laughed and swept his arms in a circle, throwing them away. The second they were flug away, Cobra darted in, claws of his dragon force infused with something else. The man blocked, then sent the poison dragon slayer flying with a powerful punch to the face. Yet a gust of wind caught him, as it had for Natsu and Gajeel. The man turned back to Sting and Rogue, who had already scrambled away.

For a second, they wondered why the dragon slayers had gathered so far away. Well, until a seal apperaed, and what looked like electricity caged together by metal surrounded him a sphere. None of them had seen the humans.

"Alright." Laxus grunted. "That should hold him for about a minute. This isn't working, is everyone able to take the spell to the next level?"

"Yep, you've improved you Thunder aPalace." Rogue muttered

He recieved nods and let out a small smile. "Good... Wait- what the hell?" His gaze had landed on the humans. He turned back slowly.

"Congratulations Natsu. This is now your problem. Go and, I don't know, just get them out of here! Then get the spell to the next level. We'll deal with Acnologia in the meantime." He snarled.

"On it." The fire dragon slayer yelled, running towards the group.

Nobody knew quite what to expect as Natsu ran towards them. As he got closer, they could see the glowing seals of magic circles on his body.

"Okay, what in the name of the deepest parts of hell are you doing here?" He exploded.

"What on earth are _you_ doing here?" Makarov challenged.

"Dealing with Acnologia." Natsu snapped.

"Natsu..." Happy said quietly. The dragon slayer glanced at him and his expression softened slightly.

"You need to leave. It's dangerous. You might end up like the dragons from earlier." He said without looking at them. Zeref stepped forwards.

"Yes, but what will we be in danger from? The dragons or you?" He asked. "I know what spell you're using."

Suprisingly, Natsu grinned. "Great! Then you can explain it to the others, I can get on with moving the spell to they next level, then carry on fighting and then come back to deal with you." He said brightly.

"Wait, what?" Lucy asked.

"Natsu, don't you dare, you know what could happen!" Zeref yelled desperately.

"Yeah, I know. And it won't happen." Natsu said seriously, looking back over his shoulder, onyx eyes blazing.

"So, you, young man." Makarov said darkly, turning to Zeref. "Have a lot of explaining to do."

* * *

"So, I'll say it one more time. What they're using is the true, final form of dragon slaying magic. It concentrates all the magic they've used, the blood of all the dragons they've killed and uses it to unlock a dragon form. One book called it the fate of anyone who dares to slay a beast of that power. However, the transformation grants them power. Raw and uncontrolable power. Not to mention that it's painful. So painful that there's a high risk that they'll lose their minds and... Well, end up like Acnologia." Zeref said gravely.

"What? Why would he even do such a thing? The moron." Gray spat.

"Watch it." Natsu was suddenly with them. He looked pretty bad, to say the least. And to be polite. Half of his body was covered in scales, one arm was a claw and one leg was a talon. It looked like it'd be really hard to walk, but he managed it with a sort of uneven grace. Then, it looked like half of his face was covered in scales a deep crimson colour, contrasting with his skin. Then the human side of him was coered in blood, both seeping and dried. Faintly, they could see the magic circles pulsing with their reassuring, haunting light. The magic meant that he was still alive, and wouldn't die any time soon. Yet they meant he was going to continue.

"You have to hide." He panted. "We somehow caught the Elder's attention and one of them is have to get out of here. They'll kill you."

"What? Isn't your side fighting for humans?" Lucy exclaimed.

"Really? I thought you'd have figured it out... Politicians all lie, doesn't matter if they're dragon or human. They just need something to motivate the troops... You'd probably turn into an 'accident' that Acnologia killed." He sighed.

"Wait, since when were you smart?" Gray asked.

"Like I said, watch it, Ice princess. I'm not in the mood and I can't really hold back at the moment. As for my reasons, if I'm still me and not dead later, I might tell you." He muttered. Just then Wendy appeared next to him. A pair of wings covered in white scales jutted from her back and half her body was covered in the blank scales that reminded everyone of the sky.

"We have to get back to the battlefield." She said grimly. It was so uncharacteristic to see such a dark expression on the young girl's face that several of the guild members flinched.

"Fine. Just hide." He sighed at them, shaking his head. Slowly, the group did as he asked, but Lucy lingered just long enough to hear Wendy speak quietly.

"You know they don't care if you show pain in front of them."

"If you guys won't show any pain at all, don't think I'm going to let you down."

* * *

Acnologia was at least wounded as well, but no where near as badly as the dragon slayers were. "Hah!" Acnologia laughed. "At least you're fighting decently this time. How long will you last?" He cackled.

"Longer than you, bastard." Natsu shot back. This made him roar with laughter more than anyone else.

"Please," He snorted. "You haven't got a chance, even if you take the spell to the end. I am interested, though. How long until you crack?"

The dragon slayers exchanged a glance. Finally, Laxus spoke for the group.

"Only one way to find out."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N Here you guys go, a slightly longer chapter to make up for the slightly longer wait. As usual I don't own Fairy Tail. Hope you enjoy! :D**

The mages watched with shock as a dragon landed near the fight. It seemed so much different from all the other dragons they'd seen. With scales a deep copper colour gleaming and deep russet swirls covering her body, the female dragon looked remarkable. She watched, piercing golden eyes narrowed. The mages started to regret hiding so close, despite not having any way of knowing where the Elder would settle.

"How interesting..." The dragon's musical voice rumbled. The group started to listen closely, straining to hear her words over the deafening roar of the battle. From where they were crouched, they could see figures moving through the smoke, and the flashes of attacks. slicing through the billowing fumes like lightning.

They expected the dragon to maybe interrupt the fight, or at least express some displeasure, so it came at a complete suprise when the beast started laughing.

"The plan went perfectly. They're using the spell already. My, my what wonderful weapons." She chuckled, tail flicking in her pleasure, leaving the mages feeling sick, especially Lucy, who had heard the words of their friends.

Suprisingly, it was Sting who completed the spell first. With a roar, he exploded in a globe of white light and without missing a beat, lunged at Acnologia, glinting claws streched out. The chaos dragon slayer batted it away with next to no effort, and ignored the bleeding gashes in his arm and how they reeked of light.

"Guys, don-" Sting's voice echoed, laced with pain, before Acnologia swiped him across the jaw and the scaled beast was sent sprawling.

"I'm a nice guy." Acnologia started. Before he could continue, there were seven sarcastic snorts. Well, Sting's was ruined by his moan of pain. "So," He continued, eye twitching. "I'm going to give you a choice... You can have a break to complete the spell... This is getting interesting, that last blow actually stung a little." He smirked, waving an arm and showering them all in repulsive blood.

Laxus looked at them. "This isn't the time to be heroes, if you don't think that you can handle it, don't do it. Or otherwise you'll never be the same. Sting might never be the same idiot again, we don't know. So I'll give you a second to think. Yes, it'll hurt, you might die, it might fail, so just think. Please." He begged. The other five stared at him in shock. Laxus had never begged, ever. He was always strong, unbreakable, yet now... Now he looked so shaken and helpless. It hurt, more than the bitter sting of their wounds, to see their leader look so unbearalby sad.

"I'm going." Natsu said firmly, the fire inside him, his anger at the chaos dragon slayer, the desire to protect his human friends and the need to just finish this, to be free from the nightmares that plauged him, free from the fear. It just needed to be finally over.

Wendy thought something similar, yet there was longing weaved in with her thoughts, she wanted to be strong enough to help them fight, she wanted to be able to fly with the other sky dragons. She didn't want to be left behind. She'd never be all alone. Never again.

Rogue couldn't stand the thought of Sting, the person who was like a brother to him and drove away his darkness, being a dragon alone. He couldn't bear to think of Acnologia winning., because if he did, no one would ever be safe again.

Laxus was exactly like his grandfather. One of his brats would be at Acnologia's mercy if he didn't have the power to stop Acnologia. Heck, if he couldn't stop Acnologia, all of his, in all but blood, brothers and sister would be in danger, and he was not going to stand for that.

Cobra hesitated. He hated that he paused but he had to think. He had people he wanted to go back too. Well, more like a person. Kinana. He would miss her, if this went wrong. Then again, he could hardly go back like he was now. Not to mention that he couldn't abandon his friends. He wasn't going to walk away from this if they weren't all together.

Gajeel was scared. Not that he'd ever admit it. Acnologia had terrified him in the last battle. He couldn't live with the chaos dragon's threat. He didn't want little people like Shrimp getting hurt. He didn't want to be scared again.

Lastly, Sting was terrified. The change had been sudden and he had next to no time to process what had happened, but he at least knew that he was still himself. Yet his mind was hurting. He could hardly tell his thoughts from the echoes that raced across his mind, vanishing when he tried to listen to them. It felt like someone was slashing at his head with claws, and the wounds were tearing him apart.

* * *

There was so much smoke, earth and ash floating in the air, that the mages couldn't see what was happening. They heard a roar, and their hearts sank. Someone had completed the spell, or Acnologia was going full out. Then there was another roar. Then another, and another, until there had been eight roars.

"Oh my God..." Zeref whispered. "They've all completed the spell..."

"But there's a chance." Lucy said mostly to herself. "When they've mastered the spell, they can deactivate it."

"You are correct. However, there's no telling whether they'll still be the people we remember." The Master reminded them.

"No matter what, he'll still be Natsu." Happy said softly.

Just then, a shape rose into the air. Looking up, Lucy could see that the figure was a dragon. Suddenly, it emerged from the smoke and Lucy had to swallow her gasp. The beast was covered in crimson scales, glistening like gems, yet it had golden flame markings all over it. Then it was joined by a large yellow dragon, with scales tinted orange, and eyes like flint. Then a huge shape streaked at them, and Lucy felt sick then. It was black, covered in pale blue markings, the colour of the sky on a crisp October day. Everything about it was filled with malice and even from so far away she could feel the dragon's bloodlust... She just hoped with all her heart that the dragon slayers would be okay. Yet that hope was lost in the beating of leathery wings and roars, then drowned out by the sounds of attacks, deafening explosions that shook nature itself.

* * *

Natsu knew they were going to lose, just not as badly as last time. They weren't used to their dragon forms, and Acnologia had so much more power from the dragon blood. At least now the chaos dragon slayer was struggling, but he knew he was going to win. They all did. With a pained grunt, Laxus called out for them to all to attack at once. Natsu sent his most powerful fire at the dragon, scarlet heat spiralling towards the dragon. It was joined by a volley of glowing elements, hurled straight at the dragon. They grouped together to survey the damage. So far, the smoke from the attack had blocked their view, so they had no way of telling what had happened. The whole fight, since using their final stage, they had been swimming in uncertainty, and now it was like they were drowning.

Acnologia emerged almost right in their faces. Claws and tail glowing sinisterly, he swung them at them and then there was another loud explosion, as they were unable to block. Then there were seven loud thumps as each dragon fell to the ground. Acnologia managed to slow his fall, then landed unsteadily on all fours, breathing heavily. Yet it didn't matter, as they were on the floor, he was looming above them. They had failed, they were going to die, one by one. Natsu's body wouldn't respond, and every limb burned. His wounds throbbed and his mind was in chaos. he could feel himself slipping away, tendrils had wrapped themselves around his thoughts and were slowly dragging them backwards into dark corners, stained by blood and hidden smirks. His head snapped up as he heard something like static in his mind. Then there was a very familiar voice, concerned and gentle.

 _"Natsu?"_

 _"Luce? How? What?"_

 _"Warren has communication magic, but apparently, your minds are so messed up that he can only get one of us through."_

 _"I... Oh, that makes sense. Sorry about leaving. Nothing can make up for it."_

 _"Moron, don't apologize. You knew that you had to do it. Besides, you probably had a good reason."_

 _"Thanks Luce. But I might not last-"_

 _"No! You're going to come back alive. Don't leave me, please. I can't live without you!"_

Something about her words drove the shadows in his mind away. He blinked then moved his claws. Acnologia sure was taking his sweet time. Glancing over, he saw that the chaos dragon slayer was strugling to stand up.

"Guys." He roared, forgetting that Lucy could hear him. "Do you think we can all do one last attack?"

"Why not." Sting muttered. His eyes were bright and clear, it was almost like... It was like he was begining to break the memory charm, but that should be impossible. Unless...

 _"Hey Luce, are you still there?"_

 _"Of course I am, let's make a deal. I won't leave you, you won't leave me. Forever."_

 _"Sounds good to me. Listen- is there anyone new in your group?"_

 _"You mean Yukino? Yeah, I think she's talking with Sting."_

 _"Aww man, that's awesome!"_

 _"Look, Warren's magic is about to run out. Just becaues you won't be able to hear me doesn't mean that I'm not with you."_

 _"Okay..."_

There was silence. _"Luce?"_ No answer. Still, he was fighting for someone now. He wasn't about to let Fairy Tail, his brother, or anyone down. He looked around to see the other dragons rising and smiled. They were going to do this all together. The others seemed to be just as determined as he was, and they all charged together. Acnologia didn't stand a chance, already weakened and almost as bad as them. So he had no chance when attacked in seven different places. He let out a breif roar of agony before suddenly going still, eyes closing. There was a breif shimmer and Acnologia was in his human form, limp and eyes glassy. They could smell his death, cold and clammy already. The last thing Natsu remembered was his roar of victory before he suddenly felt very small and his vision was comsumed by darkness.


	19. Chapter 19

Igneel woke up to see the worried face of his son and best friend. Natsu and Atlas Flame started cheering the second he blinked awake.

"Igneel! You're awake!" Natsu cried, hugging the dragon as much as he could.

"Natsu! What happened? The last thing I remember is Acnologia!" Igneel yelled in horror.

"Relax dad... Grandeeney found you and cared for you. As for Acnologia... He's dead." Natsu admitted.

"What? How did he die?" Igneel gasped.

"The dragon slayers killed him." Atlas Flame told him, glaring at Natsu. "Want to guess how?"

Igneel groaned."No..." He said slowly. "I have just woken up after being brutally attacked and you mean to tell me that you have used _that_ spell."

"Better than a wing fish." Atlas Flame offered slyly. Natsu edged away as he sensed an explosion.

"NATSU DRAGNEEL HOW DARE YOU USE THAT SPELL! YOU KNEW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN AND... Wait, you're not insane... Did it fail?" He trailed off as he suddenly realised something.

"Actually," Natsu scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "All seven of us pulled it off successfuly."

"WHAT? How?" Igneel bellowed.

"Well, it's a really long story." Natsu laughed.

"Start telling, now." Atlas Flame snapped. "Or else, you'll be thrown into a volcano."

* * *

"So, where are the humans staying now?" Igneel asked eventually.

"In a town destroyed by the dragon civil war a while ago. They're waiting to see whether we can come back. Wendy sent a message through the wind to them, so they should know that we have to... Talk to the Elders first." Natsu said, pausing to draw breath before he could even speak of the Elders. Of course, Wendy's wind message had been told about the plans of the Elders, and while their actions and motives weren't a suprise, knowing that there was a plan for them to use the final spells meant that they weren't going to be free, that there were more plans for them in store.

"Natsu..." Atlas Flame said quietly.

Just then, Ariel landed in the mouth of the cave. "Natsu," She called. "The dragon slayers need to report to the Elders in about twenty minutes. The others want to talk to you before you go."

"Right, thanks. I'll be right there." He yelled back. He turned to the two dragons. "Sorry, gotta go!"

The two dragons watched as he sprinted off. "Poor kid." Atlas Flame sighed.

"Yeah, I can't imagine what it must be like, to use that spell, to find friends and then to be forced to leave them again." Igneel sighed. He suddenly brightened. "I have an idea!"

"May God save us." Atlas Flame muttered.

"You successfully disposed of Acnologia, correct?" One of the Elders boomed.

"Correct." Laxus stated flatly.

"Congratulations. For what we have gathered, he was a tough opponent, considering that he was able to bring down the King of the Fire Dragons. Elder Delta mentioned that you completed the final form of dragon slaying magic."

"Yes. We did."

"That is useful to say the least. However, there is a mission waiting for you." The dragon slayers didn't allow themselves a reaction. Yet they could all feel their hearts breaking.

"Igneel has requested you all for a personal mission. This only happened recently. He is waiting for you on a hill nearby. You are to report to him at once."

"Understood." Laxus nodded. Without looking back, all seven dragon slayers turned away.

* * *

Igneel seemed to be in a very good mood and looked incredibly smug. "Ah good, you're here." He said, tail flicking slightly. "Anyway, I need to explain the specifics of my mission."

"Go ahead." Laxus grunted.

"I need you to go to a human town and join a guild. You need to learn about human behaviour and stuff like that." He said, proud with his idea. Slowly, the dragon slayers started to smile, seeing where he was going with his 'mission'.

"However... You need to, I don't know, send me a postcard. Actually, you need to come back and check on us some times. Am I understood? I shall inform the other dragons, the ones who need to know, of your mission. Well? Off you go!" He roared. The dragon slayers didn't need telling twice, racing off and laughing.

"Thanks Dad!" Natsu called back, smiling. "See you and Uncle Atlas Flame later!"

Atlas Flame landed next to the King of the Fire Dragons. "Looks like you found a way to save them the pain after all." He murmured, watching the slayers race off.

"I know. I'm amazing aren't I?" Igneel rumbled arrogantly. Just then, a white shape barreled into him.

"IGNEEL! YOU ARE MY PATIENT AND STILL HEALING! HOW DARE YOU LEAVE THE CAVE? YOU COMPLETE AND UTTER MORON!" Grandeeney snarled, aiming a deft paw at his face. Igneel let out a pathetic whimper as the sky dragon continued to scream at him. Atlas Flame, however, just laughed.

* * *

Zeref sighed, staring at the sky. Part of him was relieved that Natsu was okay, still himself and still alive. Yet, he was horrified at how readily he would throw away his new life. Now he was probably trapped by the Elders. Elders, rules and death. It made him wonder why he'd risk coming back. Was Acnologia's defeat really that important, and if it was, why?

Just then, he heard a shout. They had spotted something. Seven shapes, seven people were running towards the village, smiling. Happy flew towards them, wings flapping frantically as he reached his best friend.

"Natsu!" He cried, landing on Natsu's head. "You're back!"

"Yup, we got a mission from Igneel." He cheered. By then, all of the mages had gathered around the dragon slayers.

"What was the mission?" Makarov asked. He figured that it couldn't be too bad considering that all of them, even Laxus, were smiling.

"To go and join a human guild, and to learn about humans!" Wendy giggled. Suddenly, everything made sense. They had permission to go back!

"You forgot about sending him a postcard." Gajeel reminded her, smiling.

"So, you're coming back?" Erza asked, eyes wide.

"If you'll have us." Laxus said, sounding nervous of all things.

"Of course we will!" Makarov laughed.

Cobra could hear Kinana's voice, but he couldn't see her. He looked around, wondering where she could be. Just then, something barrelled into him.

"Cobra!" She squealed, hugging him. He blinked, noticing that she was no longer a snake.

"Kinana!" He gasped. "The curse, it's been broken?"

"Yep." She giggled.

"How?" He asked, blinking. He hadn't listened to her thoughts, and he found that he didn't want to. He wanted to hear it from her.

She leaned forwards and whispered in his ear, making his eyes widen. "Really?" He asked, voice betraying his shock. She nodded.

"Ew, what are they doing?" Natsu asked in a loud whisper to Lucy.

"They're- wait, you don't know what kissing is?" She asked, taken of gaurd.

Zeref walked up and laughed sheepishly. "I never told him and, well, how would the dragons know?"

"Hey bro!" Natsu said cheerfully, ruffling his brother's hair.

"Must you do that?" Zeref groaned.

"Yes." Natsu said seriously. "I have to. But seriously, what are they doing?"

"Kissing, it's how romantic lovers display thier affection." Zeref supplied helpfully.

"Like... Mating?" Natsu asked, sounding out of his depth.

"What's that. No! The dragons have scarred my poor baby brother." Zeref wailed. Natsu frowned and messed up Zeref's hair. Happy seemed to take this as an invite to join in... Lucy felt a little left out. Until Natsu's hand reached out and pulled out her ponytail. Then it was war.

* * *

Rogue had got bored watching Sting look for whoever Yukino was and instead turned to Gajeel, who was talking to Levy. The bookworm was jumping up and down and offering for him to join their team. Which it looked like the iron dragon slayer was going to do. But the most amusing thing was not the fact that both of them were blushing, but the fact that Jet and Droy were wailing in the background.

* * *

Laxus had found his Grandfather near one of the ruined buildings. "Hey." He said softly. The old man looked up and his face crinkled into a smile.

"I'm so glad you can all come back." Makarov sniffed.

"Yeah, so am I. Hey, Gramps, can I ask you something?" Laxus asked quietly.

"Go ahead my boy." Makarov said, not letting his suprise show.

"Did you mean what you said, in the fight with Acnologia? That you're proud of me." Laxus blurted.

"Yes, of course I did, why wouldn't I?" The Master asked sharply.

"Well, just how could anyone be proud of me? Of the blood on my hands?" He asked sadly.

"You're strong. You survived with the dragons. You did what you had to. You're still my grandson," Makarov reminded him.

Despite the warmth the words brought him, Laxus couldn't help but feel the doubt carved into his heart stronger than ever. _But all the reasons he listed are the reasons I'm ashamed. I became strong by killing, or in order to kill. I stayed alive by killing dragons or by helping other people kill._ Laxus thought sadly. _Does it all just come down to the fact I've got his blood in my veins?_

* * *

"So, erm, are you Yukino?" Sting asked the very pretty white haired girl. She looked at him and blinked her large brown eyes at him, looking nervous.

"Yes, are you S-Sting?" She stammered.

"Yeah. I sort of remember you from before, sorry if I don't really know you." He admitted.

"No, that's fine. I'm just... Just so glad to see you again!" She sniffed, scrubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, me too." Sting murmured. Hesitantly, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She stiffened before crying harder. "W-What's wrong?" He asked desperately. He never had been good around crying women.

"I-It's just t-that my luck has been so- so bad that I just know... This is going to end horribly." She sobbed. Sting patted her awkwardly on the back.

"It'll be okay. We can solve anything. Why is you luck so bad? You don't have to tell me, but it might help to get it off your chest." He offered.

"Oi, you two, hurry up or you'll get left behind!" Laxus bellowed.

Shyly, Yukino took Sting's hand. "Well," She gave him a tiny smile. "We have a long walk to talk about it, don't we?"

 **A/N Yay! Acnologia's dead and thr Dragon Slayers get to go back to their guild! Isn't that nice? But the story is nowhere near over and there's lots of more things to come up! *evil smile* So, you have some plot twists and stuff like that to look forward to. :D**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N Hai. Me again, but I have a favour to ask of you guys. Could you review characters that I haven't mentioned yet, since I need some ideas for something to happen later on. And no, please do NOT review Ichiya. Please. I'm begging you. Sorry about that, I don't own Fairy Tail, and enjoy the chapter. :D**

"For the last time." Gajeel snarled. "No. I am not using my dragon form for your g*y little parade."

"Fair enough." Jet shrugged, mood changing completely from the screaming man from a second ago. "You could just use your dragon force, you're ugly enough in it."

Gajeel didn't even stand up, just turned his hand into iron and punched Jet through the wall. He rolled his eyes and mutttered,"remind me how I got talked into doing a float thingy with you in this parade?" as he took a long swig from his mug.

"Gajeel, that was mean. Say sorry." Levy chided.

"Fine. Sorry, I didn't mean to punch you through the wall." Gajeel grunted, and although his apology was entirely unconvincing, it seemed to satisfy Levy, who nodded.

Cobra snorted from the other side of the guild hall, as he had heard the silent addition to the 'apology'.

"What's so funny?" Kinana asked, as she poured him another drink. "Was it something to do with the arguing between Gajeel and Jet and Droy?" She asked with a sigh. "You know Master is going to freak out when he sees the Jet shaped hole in the wall."

"Yeah, he is but it could've been worse. Gajeel was going to add 'I meant to punch him to the river' as well, and that would not have gone well. At all." He chuckled.

"Really?" Kinana laughed. "Wow, Gajeel certainly has a sharp tongue."

"He's not as nearly as rude as Rogue can be." Wendy said, falling into the seat next to him.

"I heard that!" The shadow dragon slayer yelled, causing Laxus to roll his eyes from where he sat at the bar.

"Wait..." The lightning dragon slayer muttered. "One," he pointed at Rogue. "Two," He pointed at Yukino.

"Where the hell is Sting?" He wondered.

"Oh," Yukino laughed. "He's with Happy, spying on Natsu and Lucy. He wants them to kiss."

"Moron." Laxus grunted.

"Don't be rude." Erza told him sternly.

"Sorry." Laxus said without looking at her.

"Really Erza, he's just having a laugh." Mira scolded her rival.

"See?" Laxus stared pointedly at Erza, who blushed in embarrassment.

"Sorry we're late!" Lucy called as she burst into the guild, Natsu hot on her heels.

"That's fine, where were you?" Mira asked pleasantly, ignoring the simmering Erza.

"Oh, Luce wanted to check out the magic shop... Looking for finishing touches for her costume." Natsu told them cheerfully. "Weirdo."

"Well, Natsu, there's nothing weird about wanting to look nice for the Fantasia parade. Especially if she wants to impress _someone_." Mira told him, winking.

"Huh. Who'd she want to impress?" Natsu asked, blinking dumbly.

"You." Happy flew in, distracting everyone from Sting, who slid into place with Yukino and Rogue like nothing happened.

"She _liiiiiiiiiiiiiiikes_ you." He giggled.

"Stupid cat!" Lucy screamed and threw the nearest thing at him. Too bad it was Gajeel's drink. Not to mention that it missed and hit Makarov, who was just walking down the stairs from his office.

"Who threw that?" He asked, looking suitably annoyed.

"Gray did it." Natsu said automatically. Gray, having just walked through the doors let out an outraged squawk.

"Nice try, Natsu. Gray has just come in and hasn't had the chance to do anything." Makarov groaned. "Who really did it?"

Everyone pointed at Lucy.

"Nonsense." The old man laughed. "Lucy's too sensible."

"Well," Lucy said casually. "Gajeel doesn't seem to have a drink."

"Gajeel." Makarov groaned. "Why would you do-"

Just then, a peircing alarm sounded. It didn't sound like an actual bell, more like a triangle with the sound amplified. A lot. All of the dragon slayers either winced or covered their ears.

"Is that... No way, Mavis is back." Makarov breathed.

* * *

Everyone clustered at the doors of the guild. Lucy and the dragon slayers had no idea who to expect. An extremely powerful mage. Needless to say, they were suprised to see a small, fairy like girl skipping up the steps.

"Hi!" She chirped. "I did the job!"

"Mavis, welcome back." Makarov said warmly. "And you managed to do the job?"

"Yup." She beamed.

"What kind of job was she doing?" Wendy whispered.

"Oh, you all know about S-Class?" Mira asked them. "Well, after S-Class jobs, there are S-S Class jobs. And after that, Century jobs." She explained, smiling pleasantly.

"So she was doing a Century job?" Rogue asked.

"Nope," Mira smiled at them. "Mavis was doing the next step up, an Infinity job. If she completed it, she'll be one of ten people who actually managed it."

"What?" Everyone choked.

"Oh? New members?" She asked happily. "Who are you guys?"

"I'm Lucy." Lucy smiled.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Mavis." The small girl grinned.

Laxus, Cobra, Gajeel and Rogue grunted their names, and at least looked like they were listening to her. Yukino was more polite, as was Sting and they shared small conversation.

"Yo, I'm Natsu." The fire dragon slayer greeted.

"I'm Mavis." She peered at him. "Are you a Dragneel? You have the same look in your eyes as this guy I know."

"Yep, are you the girl my bro loves?" He asked cheerfully.

"Well, I did travel with Zeref a while back... Hmm, speaking of him, how is he?"

"Seemed good to me. He's joined a light guild!"

"Wow, that's great! I'll have to visit him soon."

Makarov cleared his throat loudly. "Well, Mavis, you're just in time for the Fantasia Parade."

"Oh, am I? Yay!" Mavis cheered, eyes sparkling.

"This," Gray snorted. "Is going to be one hell of a parade."

"Yes, it is, Gray-sama!" Juvia agreed. "Our float will be amazing."

"That isn't quite what I meant." He muttered quietly.

After another three days of preparing, Fairy Tail was finally ready to do the parade. Little did they know, that pretty much all of Fiore had heard of the dragon slayers with much thanks to Jason, and wanted to see the powerful mages for themselves. So, the city was going to be swarming with crowds, a mass of mixed intentions.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N Hi, here's a chapter! :D I really need a character idea, because I'm filling in the element four. So far I have three of them sorted but I just need an idea for the fourth. Sorry about that, as usual, I don't own Fairy Tail, and enjoy.**

Gray and Juvia had stuck with their ice float idea, and looked regal while they sat on their freezing thrones., throwing ice roses or making bubbles. smiling and waving. The children especially were excited by this and would rush around to try to catch the flowers and pop the bubbles. However, if the roses and their sharp edges and thorns ever looked like they were going to hurt a child, they would burst into tiny ice dasies.

Laxus and a team that called themselves the Thunder God Tribe were doing some weird march with sticks or staffs. The children didn't really understand what they were doing, but smiled anyway, because the lightning Laxus made run along his staff looked really cool. The adults, who recognised it appreciated the style, since they knew how hard it was.

Sting and Rogue had dressed up as knights and were attacking each other with swords, much to Yukino's mirth. She giggled, adjusting her crown every now and then, watching them fight, apparently over her. She didn't really need to do anything, just listen to the crowd taking sides and enthusisastically cheering them on.

Erza, Bisca, Wendy, Mira and Kinana had teamed up and done a dancing float. Cobra sat in the shadows and pressed the lacrima that occasionally made sparkles, rainbows and spotlights. He really didn't want to do anything. Except watch Kinana. Erza had threatened to break every bone in his body if he somehow ruined the effect of their float. Mira had then promised that he'd never see the light of day if he messed it up. The scary girls took it all _way_ too seriously.

Max did his own thing with a broom and was just best avoided. Warren was making sure the whole thing went smoothly and was checking up on everyone. Mavis had dressed up as a pixie and was sitting on Makarov's head as he used his titan magic. The small girl made all sorts of creatures with her illusion magic.

Then, right at the end, was the NaLu... **(A/N Had to do it, sorry...)** Natsu and Lucy. They were making colourful fireworks, Lucy using her celestial magic to create golden sparks, while Natsu would make colourful explosions. At one point, he made a dragon out of swirling golden flames swoop over the crowds, much to the delight of all the small children. Mira was also especailly happy with the two of them. This of course had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Natsu had made a small heart out of flames and had it hover over Lucy's head the entire time.

Lucy didn't know this until she looked in a window and saw it relelcted above her. She blushed and looked at Natsu, only to see him busy making another fire dragon. She looked up and blinked, staring at the flames like she'd never seen fire before, cheeks stained pink.

Eventually, after much cheering, laughing and clapping, the guild did one final performance before bowing and finishing for the night. The swarming corwds eventually left, dark guilds slinking away to make plans, satisified by the petty show of power. The member of other guilds who wanted to catch up ended up having a nice chat under the stars. Those who didn't have anyone to talk to grouped together and watched the drama unfold.

"Juvia, my love!" A guy with white hair sang. "It is truly a pleasure to see you again."

"H-Hello Lyon. Juvia thinks it is nice to see Lyon again too." She stammered, giving him a strained smile.

"Stay away from her, you creep. For the last time, she doesn't want to join Lamia Scale. Or talk to you." Gray snapped.

"Charming to see you too Gray," Lyon remarked waspishly. "And why must you speak so harshly for a lady as lovely as Miss Juvia."

"Gray-sama would never be mean. Juvia isn't interested in Lyon!" The water mage yelled.

"Nonesense. You merely have yet to realise the strength of our bond!" Lyon declared.

"Oh dear, that is so not going end well." Lucy muttered.

"And you think that whatever is going on with Erza is going to end any better?" Laxus snorted.

"Erza, honey, please just let me smell your radiant parfume!" A creepy guy with a mane of red hair cried, waving his arms about. Erza's eye twitched, but she hadn't yet hit him.

Just then, Lucy and Wendy found themselves surrounded, or more like cornered by three men. They all wore suits and looked perfectly groomed, not a hair out of place.

"Can I call you Big Sister?" One of them asked Lucy, staring up at her with adoring eyes.

"Aren't you too young for this?" One of them asked Wendy briskly.

"Whatever, she's going to be totally beautiful in a few years." The brown haired one obseved. He put a hand around each of the girl's shoulders, making them squirm uncomfortably. "Would you two care for a drink with me? Just a juice for the little one, though." He asked smoothly, finishing with a sly wink.

He was unaware of the over-protective dragon slayers hovering behind him.

"What," Gajeel growled. "Do you think you're doing with Wendy?"

"And Lucy." Natsu added darkly.

"Taking these lovely women for a drink." He told them, smirking. There was a growl from the back of the group from Sting and Rogue. It appeared that the other two had found Yukino.

"Go away." Laxus spat. "You're ruining a perfectly good evening."

"On the contrary," The man glared at them. "This evening would be a hell of a lot better without you." He wrinkled his nose. "Seriously, the lot of you look like... Animals."

Then, all three of them found themselves flying from nine attacks. There was a loud wail of 'Meeeeeeeeeeen!' and their leader, it seemed, had finally gone too far and really annoyed Erza. Then Lyon also joined them. It looked like Gray had seriously lost his temper, as the ice lance was a bit stronger than usual.

"This," Makarov groaned. "Is why Fantasia is always a disaster. Now their Guild Master's are going to sue me."

"Don't worry. It can hardly be worse than the damage bills you're going to get from my mission." Mavis giggled.

The Master looked like he was about to cry...

* * *

Natsu had broken into Lucy's house again, and was bouncing on her bed. "Come on, we need to go to the guild!" He cried.

"Aye, wake up Lushie!" Happy laughed.

"One more minute..." She moaned. Suddenly she blinked. "Eh? What on earth are you two doing in my house?" She screeched.

"Wah! Lushie's trying to kill me. Natsu help!" Happy sobbed.

Natsu laughed and shook his head. "Well, we'll wait downstairs for Lucy to take her decade in the bathroom." Unfortunately for Lucy, he knew her far too well and knew when to duck.

Eventually, after the three had enjoyed a wonderful breakfast which Lucy complained about making for about five minutes before Natsu offered to help and she rapidly declined, knowing full well what would happen to her kitchen if he did help, they started walking towards the guild.

"Hey Luce, do you need to go on a job, since... Well, I really need to get some money for the house." He laughed sheepishly. Lucy smiled as she remembered the dragon slayers excitedly announcing they were going to make their own house somewhere in the forest. She remembered Cana asking if they were all going to sleep in trees and Gajeel saying something _very_ rude back to her. This ended up in another brawl, and to everyone's suprise, Mavis joined in.

"Sure, lets go for a really high paying one." She suggested slyly. She knew what Natsu's reaction would be, as he loved the high paying, dangerous jobs.

"Awesome!" He laughed, slinging an arm around her shoulder. "You're the best Luce!"

Lucy smiled to herself. She knew him so well, she had predicted his reaction perfectly. Yet she clearly didn't know him well enough, as she had no clue what that heart meant.

They met a large group of guild members, who were silent and staring at something in horror. Natsu elbowed his way through the crowd, Lucy following the path he had made. They stopped and gazed at their guild, or rather, the pile of rubble that their guild had become.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail... Hope you all enjoy!**

"Master Makarov has gone into the guild to see if we can salvage anything." Cobra whispered. He had been quiet, but his voice seemed to be the signal for everyone else to break out in anxious murmurs.

"Who... Who did this?" Natsu was almost speechless with fury.

"We don't know. There was apparently no one in the guild when it happened. Whoever did it is a coward alright." Gray told them in a hushed tone, dark eyes glistening with rage.

"Damn them. I'll show them how to destroy a place." Laxus snarled quietly.

"We'll be right behind you, Laxus." Freed promised darkly.

Just then, there was a loud rumble and more of the building collapsed.

"Gramps is in there." Laxus realised. "Oh shi-"

Whatever rude words he was about to say were cut off by another loud explosion. A massive fist pushed away the rubble. From the dust, Makarov emerged, looking absoulutely livid. There was a note crumpled in his normal sized hand.

"A note?"

"Who from?"

"What's going on?"

Makarov took a deep breath and began to read, not even answering any of their questions.

"Dear Fairy Tail, we have already displayed our power by destroying your guild hall, so we will make our request once and only once. Hand over Lucy Heartfilia, we have a job request concerning her, and the dragon slayers. You don't deserve such powerful mages in your guild. Signed Phantom Lord." He spat, throwing the paper on the ground and stamping on it.

There were several shouts of outrage from the crowd and a lot of people's magic energy flared up. Several people noticed that glowing seals had appeared on Laxus' body, and he appeared to be furious. Mavis frowned.

"So... They do the low thing and attack our building when no one was in it, and then have the nerve to threaten us and make demands?"Mavis asked slowly, eyes narrowing.

"Yes. It seems so. And Laxus, stop the spell. It should only be used as a trump card, and most certainly not because you're angry." Makarov sighed without turning around to face them after he had finished crushing the letter.

Laxus glowered at his grandfather but the seals on his body faded. The crowd burst into furious shouts, just itching to give these load of cowards a peice of their minds. Yet all was chillingly silent with Natsu, a warning sign that something was wrong. The idiot was known for letting his temper get the better of him and speaking his mind.

It took everyone a shamefully long time to turn around and notice that Lucy was crying. Natsu was holding her as she had sunk to her knees and covered her face, whole body trembling with the force of her sobs.

"I'm so, so sorry." She cried. "This is all my fault."

"So... Why would your father want you back after all this time, I just don't get it..." Cana wondered, staring at Lucy, who had just shakily explained what her father had done to her guild.

"Who knows? Probably some rich guy wants to marry me and he needs me now." Lucy explained sadly. "I'll get ready to leave soon, don't worry."

"What? No!" The whole guild cried.

"You are not going back to such a horrible man." Mavis added sternly.

"B-But he'll stop hurting you if I go... It's for the best." Lucy argued, fresh tears springing to her eyes.

"No, it's a dark guild, clearly. Not to mention that Phantom Lord has had it in for us for a long time, this was just an excuse. I forbid you from leaving." The Master ordered. "In fact, you're going to come with us while we attack them, you're pretty strong, in fact, you're very strong, we'll be glad to have you on board."

"Yeah Luce, you don't have to go anywhere you don't want to." Natsu added softly.

"But... I can't bear the thought of any one of you getting hurt just because I'm selfish enough not to marry someone." She sniffed, not meeting their eyes.

"It's unmanly to force someone to marry someone else."

"Yeah, what a creep. Marriage is for happiness and love, not money."

"I don't get it. What's marriage?" Natsu asked, plainly confused. Everyone's heart sunk as Mira skipped over and started whispering in his ear. A few seconds later, he leapt away from her, cheeks burning red.

"So, marriage is like mating?" Natsu practically blurted the question.

"Hmm, what's mating?" She asked far too innocently. This time, it was Natsu who had to whisper to Mira. She let out an ear peircing squeal by the time he was done.

"That's so sweet!" She cooed.

"But is marriage like that?" He asked, clearly wanting to get away from the topic of whatever mating was.

"Pretty much, but less romantic and permanent." She told him happily. Everyone began to sweat at that. If Mira thought something was more romantic than getting married, then there was clearly something to worry about.

"If that's the case, no way is Lucy going to get married to some guy she has never met before." He spat. "No way in hell."

"But-"

"Look," The Master bellowed. "Nobody is going anywhere, at all. This dark guild will be... Removed as soon as possible. In fact, anyone interested in planning an attack come with me." He finished briskly and marched off to his office, followed closely by Mavis and Laxus, but the latter seemed to be reluctant.

"Don't worry Lucy." Natsu gave her a small smile, a ghost of his old grin. "We'll sort this out, you'll see."

The next day, everyone gathered in the basement of the guild hall, where a temporary job request board had been made and Lucy dimly wondered when she and Natsu could take the job they talked about. Everyone here was preparing to go to battle. Makarov had just explained the plan. Everyone was going to stick in pairs, and they had a communication system so if anyone was in trouble, they could help one another. What was their battle plan? Drive deep into the heart of their enemy with brute force and tear them to shreds from the inside.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N Hi, this is just a quick warning. Since I never really cared for any of the element four other than Juvia, and she's already in Fairy Tail in this story, I'm going to use random characters to make up the element four instead. Be aware that not all of them are from dark guilds.**

In the Phantom Lord guild hall, members were joking around and laughing, having drinks and arguing. It looked scarily similar to the Fairy Tail guild hall. A girl lounged at the bar, looking around at her surroundings with disdain. A man in a long red cape strode over to her and frowned.

"Wipe that look of your face." He snapped, looking at the girl.

She scowled at him. "Well, you can hardly blame me. I don't want to-" She broke off as the man took a threatening step forward.

"Get over it." He hissed harshly, narrowing his eyes at her. "It's been years since you joined. Your petty little light guild hasn't come to get you. Give up."

"Oh, I wonder why they haven't come." She retorted hotly. "Mabye because they think I'm _dead_."

"You should be greatful. Master Jose gave you the oppertunity of a lifetime." He snarled.

"Yeah, kidnapping me, using me for magical expreiments and giving me powers I never asked for." She yelled, becoming shrill.

"Master Jose saw potential in you and saved you from a life of-" He broke of and his eyes darted around the guild hall and he realised the scene he was causing. "Master Jose wishes to see you in his office, for battle plans. The rest of the element four are waiting for you there."

"Oh good," She sighed, storming off. Several people stared after her, confusion written all over their faces. Shrugging, everyone turned back to their business, it wasn't unusual for that particular member to be annoyed, but she always saved them in the end, she always came back to them. Little did they know the reason why.

* * *

The doors of the fortress were blown off their hinges by a loud explosion. Natsu Dragneel stood before Phantom Lord in all of his simmering glory, Fairy Tail spread out behind him, Lucy at his side. They all looked ready to kill. The general goal was to aim for Jose's office and then to destroy him. Almost at once, the air exploded into attacks, magic energy fizzing with every breath.

Erza and Mira, who had teamed up this once and only once, used the shock to their advantage and ploughed ahead, sprinting up the stairs, disappearing around the corner and no one could stop them.

"Open, Gate of the Lion, Loke!" Lucy cried, summoning the king of the Zodiacs. He smirked and punched the nearest Phantom Lord member in the face.

"At your call, Princess." He said smoothly, making Lucy roll her eyes.

"Star Dress, Leo." She yelled. "Regulus Lucy Kick!" Sending her foot flying into the chest of a random guy, sending him sprawling into Natsu's flames.

"Nice one Luce," He cheered. "Fire Dragon's brilliant blaze." He roared a second later.

Soon, they had cleared a small pathway to the staircase, but it was quickly filling with people fighting, so Natsu grabbed Lucy's hand and pulled her through, with no choice but to leave Loke behind.

"We forgot Loke." Lucy was dismayed.

Natsu looked over his shoulder as they ran down the hallways, paintings and random doors flashing past them in a blur of pastal colours. "Do you think you could send him a message through his key?" He asked.

"Natsu, you idiot." Lucy exclaimed. "I can't do that. Why would I be able to do that?"

"I don't know. Your magic is weird." He frowned, as if thinking. "A good weird though, I like it." He concluded, nodding.

Despite the burning stich in her side, Lucy smiled. She never knew why, but whenever Natsu complimented her, she felt all warm inside. She wasn't quite sure what the feeling was, but it was a good one. She just wished she knew why she felt like that.

"Infiltrating our fortress was a very bad idea." A goat stepped out in front of them, he seemed to be humanoid and was wearing a suit. Natsu and Lucy skidded to a halt and stared at him. "My name is Capricorn."

"Hey Luce," Natsu sounded ill. "Magic can sure do some interesting things, huh?"

"Yeah... I think he's a celestial spirit." She shrugged.

"Hey! I must inform you that's rude." The goat sounded offended.

"Relax, Capricorn. You can beat some sense into them in a second." A female voice soothed, and a white haired women stepped into view. "You have some nerve coming here." She told them, her voice like steel. Her eyes narrowed. "Capricorn, go."

"Of course, Lady Angel." The goat nodded then charged at Natsu. The dragon slayer glared at the goat and leapt out of the way of his first punch.

"I got this guy, Luce, can you take care of the crazy woman?" He yelled, turning back to face the zodiac spirit.

"Sure thing." She turned and glared at Angel.

"Well, what magic do you use?" Angel sneered, wrinkling her nose. "Probably something ugly and weak, knowing you scum."

"Open, Gate of the lion, Loke." Lucy cried, summoning her spirit to her side, from where he'd been fighting on the previous floor.

"Well, Princess, who are we fighting?" He asked, pushing his glasses further up his nose.

"What? How does a-a _rat_ like you have a powerhouse like Leo?" Angel shrieked, her face flushed with rage. Then, after several deep breaths, she smirked, eyes glinting like a shark's, one that had just seen its prey.

"Tell you what," She said in a sickening voice that dripped greed. "We'll change the rules ever so slightly, and I'll tell you what's going to happen." Her voice became distinctly nasty. "When I win, I'll get your keys, and if you win, you'll get my keys. Deal? Deal. Good."

"I never agreed to that." Lucy snapped.

"You have now." Angel's tone became threatening.

"Loke, let's go!" Lucy yelled. She really wanted to punch Angel in the face and the lists of reasons why was becoming longer and longer by the second.

"Hmm, well you clearly are new at this, aren't you? You know nothing." Angel laughed scornfully. "Open, Gate of the ram, Aries."

"I'm sorry." A girl with horns and pink hair popped into existance. "Sorry." She squeaked. Something about her just seemed so innocent and... Fluffy.

"You will be if you don't beat those guys." Angel told her, voice oozing satisfaction.

"Who... Leo? No! I can't." Aries screamed, eyes widening with horror when she saw Loke, mirroring her expression.

"Aries... How?" He breathed, eyes filling with tears. "I'm so, so sorry. I didn't save you after all, did I?"

"No!" She cried. "What did you agree to? My key was sold after you did something." She sniffed.

"I... Do you really want to know?" He asked, looking at the floor. "You know I would never, ever hide something from you, you've been betrayed so damn much, but you really don't... Want to see." He trailed off sadly, running out of words.

"Let me see." She demanded, trembling.

The girls watched in horrified fascination as he pulled off his shirt and turned his back to them. It was covered in ugly scars, clouds against his skin, uneven and jagged, repulsive snakes scrawled against his back.

"Loke." Lucy was appalled.

"I offered to take all your punishments and more if she stopped." He admitted, looking at the floor.

"Leo, how could you? No, no, no." She sobbed. "Why?"

"Because I care about you, silly." He sounded suprisingly gentle, he reached forward and brushed her hair from her face. "I couldn't stand to see you hurt."

Lucy's heart ached to think of all the pain her spirit had endured, and hidden behind behind his mask of cheer and flirting.

Angel threw back her head and laughed, boisterous cruel cackles echoing across the walls. "How perfect, you'll be a matching pair when you join my collection. Hah!" She snorted.

"I can't disobey my Master's orders, but I can't fight Leo either." Aries wailed, tears streaming down her face.

"I don't want to fight you either." Loke said sadly. "But... Why?" He yelled desperately, holding her close.

"Loke, you don't have to fight Aries. Get her away from here." Lucy told him quietly. Loke stared at her like he'd never seen her before.

"What? Really?" His eyes were swimming with hope and tears.

"Yeah, go." She narrowed her eyes at Angel. "This is going to get really ugly."


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N I don't own Fairy Tail. You are either going to love or hate this chapter... Sorry! ^^,**

"Oh, and what's a little ***ch like you going to do?" Angel jeered.

"Star Dress: Taurus form." She said darkly, holding up the key of the golden bull.

"What on earth are you doing?" Angel spat. Her eyes widened with horror as she realised what Lucy was doing.

"Why you. Star Dress: Scorpio Form." She screamed, voice filled with hatred. The two mages charged at each other, one unwilling to harm her friends any more, the other unwilling to dirty her pawns by dealing with such trash.

Lucy leapt away from the wave of sand and then darted in close, fist pulled back. Angel flinched when the wave of sand died down and she had a clear view of Lucy charging at her. She raised her hands in a block, but Lucy ducked underneath Angel's rushed gaurd and hit her hard in the stomach.

The white haired woman groaned and pulled Lucy's hair, making the blonde stamp on her foot. With a screech, the two pulled away from each other. "Lucy kick." She cried, swinging her foot at Angel's face, who side stepped it and punched Lucy in the face. Lucy didn't waste a second in using the close distance to get a successful kick in Angel's face. There was a snap of a nose breaking and Lucy suddenly remembered she was wearing boots, as the Taurus Star Dress gave her cowboy boots.

Then, a large shape came out of no where and smashed into Angel. Lucy blinked, realising it was Capricorn, from earlier. A blazing blur crashed into him.

"Never," Natsu snarled. "Say something like that about Luce again." He finished his statement by socking the goat in the face and getting a Fire Dragon's Brilliant Blaze ready, unaware of Angel squashed up behind the goat man.

"People who play with fire," He bellowed.

"Get burnt." Lucy finished enthusiastically. She added her own attack, raw celestial magic chanelled in a large beam to the attack. There was a beautiful sounding explosion and Angel was left alone in a crater, not having enough magic to keep Capricorn with her.

She stirred slightly and mumbed a name. "Yu...no."

"What?" Lucy asked, suprised.

"Yukino... Y-You're just like... Like her. My... Little s-sister." She laughed weakly, coughing a little.

"Are you okay, Lady. Sorry, I didn't realise you were there." Natsu admitted sheepishly.

"Nah, I deserved that and more, I've been so stupid... I thought I heard Yukino... Yukino's voice. In that explosion." She smiled slightly. "Knocked some sense into me, huh. Take my keys." She suddenly looked at Lucy. "Please," She added once she'd seen Lucy's expression. "I don't deserve them, not after the hell I put them through. They'll be better off with you."

"But-" Lucy protested.

"Please. I have another magic, anyway, and they really won't be happy with me. Actually, I hat to ask... But, c-could you give this golden key to Yukino. Please..." She shoved all her keys into Lucy's face and then collapsed into a faint.

"What just happened?" Lucy asked weakly.

"No clue." Natsu shrugged, and pulled Angel to the side of the crater and covered her with one of the tapestries he'd pulled off the wall.

Lucy was about to walk over to him but her knees buckled. The toll on her magic energy had taken a lot from her, and the fight had been exhausting. Natsu rushed to her side, and close up, Lucy could see how the fight had worn him out.

"Are you okay?" He asked her in a low voice, containing an emotion she couldn't identify.

"Yeah. What about you?" She asked anxiously.

"I'm fine, just a little out of breath. How about we take a quick break?" He suggested. Lucy nodded and they both collapsed greatfully into a corner.

* * *

A man in a red cape stepped out in front of Mira and Erza. He looked at the two of them and smirked when he saw Mira, though neither requip or demon take-over mage could tell why.

"My name is Bora. I will attempt to fight one of you. I cannot say I will last long, however, one of the element four is waiting just around the corner to the left. Whoever defeats me will get to go to Master Jose, the other will have a difficult battle, as the member of the element four is... Motivated." He told them smoothly, in a cold, cunning voice. He didn't give them a chance to respond, before continuing. "My opponent will be Erza Scarlet. Mirajane Strauss, I wish you the best of luck." He smirked evilly.

Mira and Erza glanced at each other and Erza nodded. Scowling, Mira stalked past the two mages and around the corner.

"Well," Erza said cooly, glaring at Bora. "Shall we start?"

Yet they both knew that it would be over quickly. Once Erza used her Flame Empress armour, it was over, while fire dragon slaying magic would give her a challenge, normal fire magic would not. Bora never really stood a chance.

Erza could feel Jose's magical energy from where she stood. It was ominous and huge, swelling with darkness. She knew that this guy would be no where as easy to defeat as Bora, she was going to have trouble with him, she sorely hoped that the others had made it through, she definately couldn't do this alone.

Mira walked around the corner, thinking of who her opponent could be, and why had Bora smirked like that. She turned the corner and came to face with someone who looked almost exactly like her. Face framed by delicate strands of hair the colour of snow, big, shocked, horrified sapphire eyes and the same innocent features. Yet this girl was not Mira. She was ever so slightly shorter than Mira, and her hair stopped at her shoulders. Their clothes were different, but that was to be expected. Mira was wearing a locket, with a picture of the girl in front of her, but the child in the picture was a lot younger. The girl in front of her also wore jewelry, but it was a thin metal bracelet, looking as though it was part of a handcuff.

Mira let out a strangled gasp. "Lisanna..."

* * *

Laxus stormed down the corridor, Rogue trailing behind him. The people they had first fought were pathetic weaklings and nothing more. He had lead Rogue up the stairs as soon as he could and they were looking for Jose, in the hopes that they'd find a real challenge. They ended up in a circular room, honey coloured bricks lined by flickering torches. Unknown to them, but similar to the other groups, a single person awaited them. He had toned skin and a black bushy beard.

"Did you really think that Phantom Lord was doing this alone?" He laughed, not even looking at them. "Hah, well, they're getting assistance from- wait, what's your name, boy?"

"What- why?" Laxus asked. Part of him wanted to tell the man, he seemed familiar somehow, on some distant level.

"You look just like my little boy, Laxus, but he went missing years ago." The man sounded so deeply sad and sorry that Laxus just had to tell him.

"Funny that, my name is Laxus." He told the man. The expression of hope that crossed the man's face was painful, so unbearably strong.

"Do you remember me, my boy, I'm Ivan, your father." Now known as Ivan asked egarly. The name seemed to be enough to have an effect on the memory spell. Laxus grunted in pain as he slapped a hand to his head, hoping to stop the headache. Memory after memory poured into his head, until he knew everything about his father.

"I... Remember now." Laxus mumbled.

"That's great, my boy." Ivan beamed. "Though I must admit, I'm suprised you didn't ask Makarov about me. You clearly know him, as you're a part of _his_ guild."

"Actually, Gramps was the first person I saw, and it broke a part of the memory charm." Laxus admitted. "And I didn't ask about you because I knew he'd be biased. You not being there anymore told me pretty much all I needed to know."

"Ah, yes. Makarov and I had a disagreement after you were stolen by the dragons." Ivan laughed sheepishly, yet Laxus could tell that Ivan thought he was in the right. The fact he didn't look or sound all that sad.

"Yeah, he forgot to mention that." Laxus muttered.

"My poor boy, if only I had known, I would've come to see you sooner and take you away from that horrible guild." Ivan really did sound sorry this time.

"What are you implying?" Laxus asked sharply.

"Nothing at the moment, my dear boy." Ivan assured him. "So, you're a dragon slayer now?" He asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah, I'm the Lightning Dragon slayer." Laxus told Ivan. "I sort of lead the group."

"Wow, that _is_ impressive, leading a group of fierce warriors and slaying dragons." Ivan really did sound impressed. Suddenly, his tone became gentler. "But that must've been hard on you. You had to kill to survive, and that's never easy. Taking a life."

Laxus found himself at a loss for words. How could someone he hardly knew, the only knowledge he had of Ivan was from memories, understand him so well? How did Ivan know his pain, the doubts, the nightmares?

"I... How?" Laxus choked.

"Simple. After I was kicked out of Fairy Tail, I had no choice but to join a dark guild, no one would take me after they head I got kicked out of the best guild. And the missions here involve taking life sometimes. So I know how it feels." Ivan explained softly.

"No one else... Would take you?" Laxus asked, taken off gaurd.

"Yes. But dark guilds aren't a bad place to be. The missions have better pay and there's no limit to how much destruction you can cause." Ivan added.

"Yeah, but they're outcasts from society?" Laxus blurted.

"Yes. But... You'd do good in one of them. More specifically, my dark guild." Ivan raised an eye brow.

"What are you saying?" Laxus narrowed his eyes ever so slightly.

"I'm saying you should come and join me in my dark guild."


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N Here's the next chapter :) How many of you thought I was actually gonna... Oops... Never mind, I hope you all enjoy the chapter, and I don't own Fairy Tail.**

"No." Laxus stood up.

"What?" Ivan looked shocked. He'd completely brought Laxus' acting.

"I said no. Didn't you hear me?" Laxus asked in a dark tone.

"B-But... Where's you family loyalty?" Ivan stuttered, voice dripping with fury.

"Where was your family loyalty when you used me as a human shield against the dragon and let it take me?" Laxus shot back.

"I-I... No, I didn't." Ivan stuttered, but he was caught of guard, and he was letting his emotions show in his facial expression.

"Yes, you did. Don't lie to me. I remember." Laxus spat.

"I was scared." Ivan defended. "I wasn't thinking straight." Even he could see that his defence was weak.

"Oh yeah?" Laxus raised an eyebrow. Lightning was starting to race across the room, and the torches were flickering and waving wildly. "You're nothing but a coward." Laxus yelled, letting all of his anger, sorrow and betrayal out. "You hide behind everything, you hide from truths, all the things you can't deal with. And when you ran out of shields, you used your own son. You make me sick." He finished, whole body covered in lightning. With a wordless cry of fury, Ivan launched himself at Laxus, lips parted to yell out the name of an attack, to summon magic.

Yet his words were drowned out by a roar. "Lightning dragon's roar!" Laxus bellowed, sending a powerful torrent of electricity hurtling towards his father. By the time the dust cleared, he was left standing over the badly bruised and burnt body of his father. Laxus could only tell he was alive by the shallow rise and fall of his chest. Without looking back, Laxus turned and strode off, down the corridor, coat billowing out behind him.

* * *

"Lisanna? Is that really you?" Mira repeated, voice failing her at the end as tears began to roll down her face.

"Mira? What? How are you here?" Lisanna gasped, eyes brimming with tear that had yet to fall. Her eyes widened as she was crushed in a hug and Mira sobbed noisily on her shoulder.

"Lisanna, how? I thought you were dead... We saw you die." Mira howled through her sobs.

"Mira... I... I'm so sorry." Lisanna cried.

"Why? You shouldn't be... I thought you were dead." Mira wailed.

"No... I knew you thought I was dead. It was all part of their plan... I'm not mad at you. Just myself." Lisanna said softly.

"Who's _them_? Lisanna, please just tell me. P-please... I want to help you!" Mira cried.

"Phantom Lord and Master Jose. They used an illusion mage to make it look like I died.. A-And they brought me back here and forced me to join and experimented with my magic. Now... Now I'm a part of the Element Four..." Lisanna sniffed, voice wobbling.

"Shh, don't worry. What did they do?" Mira asked soothingly, putting on a brave face.

"They... They used remains of mythical and powerful animals to enhance my take over. The phoenix one nearly killed me. Then I'm forced to fight for them and go on jobs for them... Always with someone else. Never alone. Always with this." Lisanna miserably held up her wrist, where the cold metal bracelet dug into her skin.

"That? What does it do?" Mira questioned softly.

"Watch." Lisana said bitterly. She raised a hand and transformed it into a gleaming talon of a rich golden colour, before smashing it down on the bracelet. The device let out a stream of pale electricity and Lisanna screamed. She collapsed, battered and bruised.

"It's a tracking device." She panted. "I never go near Magnolia. The things they did to anyone who tried to help me..." Her eyes were brimming with fresh tears. "If I disobey them, the bracelet lets out electricity. I can never break it." She sniffed. She stared up at Mira, who was emitting a dark aura. Energy pulsed out of the eldest Strauss sibling as she used her ultimate spell. Mirajane towered above Lisanna, covered in dragon scales the colour of the sky just as it turned blue after dawn.

Lisanna stared numbly at her sister as one of her claws started glowing with demonic energy. She didn't register what Mira was doing until the claw smashed down on the bracelet. There was a loud snapping sound and the metal snapped in half, right where Lisanna had dented it after years of hammering away.

"You're free." Mira's voice had the strange, other world quality of her demon form. It faded as she turned back to normal. "We can finally be a family again." She whispered.

"Yeah," Lisanna was crying for an entirely different reason now. "We can."

* * *

Erza had been fighting Jose for a while by the time Laxus arrived. She was alarmed that he was alone and not with Rogue, but decided not to question him, deciding that he probably had a good reason for it. While he helped, they were still outmatched by Jose. Despite her best armours and Laxus' dragon slayer secret arts, he was still destroying them with his dark magic. Collosal shadow figures loomed over them and missiles would emerge from the dark corners and strike them in the back.

Natsu and Lucy emerged into the battle next. Lucy was quickly forced to summon Loke and use her Taurus star dress. Natsu tried for about five minutes before breaking away and swearing. "To hell with it." He muttered. "I'm using it."

Lucy was terrified that he was about to use the final form of dragon slaying magic, but instead, the fire covering him was suddenly joined by lightning. "Lightning Flame Dragon Mode." He announced grimly.

"Huh," Laxus sounded mildly suprised. "I almost forgot you could do that..."

"Lightning Flame Dragon... Roar!" He released a huge torrent of flames and lightning, glowing sinisterly and with a furious promise of pain to anyone who touched it. Lucy joined Erza in getting in close range, Erza with twin swords and Lucy with her whip. Natsu and Laxus provided a lot of roar attacks, and occasionally darted in with punches, kicks or wing attacks.

"Are we too late you join the party?" Mira asked. Beside her was someone neither Lucy, Natsu or Laxus recognised but Erza clearly did. She let out a shocked cry of: "Lisanna, you're alive!" Making Mira giggle slightly.

"Yeah," Lisanna said softly. Then her tone and expression hardened. "And I'm going to get revenge."

Jose stared at her in horror. "How?" He choked. "That bracelet was supposed to be unbreakable."

"Never underestimate Fairy Tail." Lisanna hissed. "Take over: Phoenix."

"Wow, Jose, to think that you can't even keep your members loyal." A voice teased coldly.

Everyone whirled around and stared at the new arrivals. There was a woman in a strange helmet, and she looked remarkably like a there was a woman with long black hair wearing a leopard print kimono, holding a book. There was a guy with strange hair, that looked like ears and he had odd black markings all over his hands and arms. At the front of the group, and the one who had spoken was a man with a purple ponytail and a cold smirk.

"Ah. Tartaros. Took you long enough." Jose sounded a horrible mixture of relieved and smug. "Where are the others? We need more reinforcements here."

"Raven Tail took their payment and have already left." The hawk like woman informed Jose with sickening amusement. "We will also require payment." She added, tone suddenly a lot colder. "Should you fail..." She trailed off, making Jose gulp.

"Yes, yes, but now I have reinforcements..." Jose sounded rather desperate.

"Funny that." Another voice cut in. "Because Fairy Tail seems to have reinforcements as well." Jellal remarked. He had entered the room with Zeref and Ultear. The Fairy Tail mages grinned, Jellal's guild really was something else.

"Zeref." Ponytail man spat.

"And Jellal." The leopard print woman added.

"Oh great. You're here. This can't be good." Jellal groaned.

"You will both pay dearly for what you have done to our guild." The one with ears snarled. "Jellal for taking out half of our sub guilds, and you, Zeref for tearing us apart from within."

"As tempting as that sounds, I have to deny." Zeref rolled his eyes. "You're causing trouble again."

"Can we just skip to the fighting?" Natsu asked loudly.

"Good idea, Pinky." The one with ears laughed. Just like that, the fighting began again. There were explosions, attacks flying everywhere and screaming. In all of the chaos, it was hard to tell who was who. Yet everyone seemed to be managing to hit someone. A chain of explosions was swallowed by Natsu, and the pony tail guy was struck by Laxus' lightning and a pulse of dark magic. Jose was slashed by Lisanna's talons, leaving him with bleeding gashes across his face. Mira attacked him from behind. Then something odd happened. The other two, the women stepped into the battle, stopping Erza and Jellal, while the leopard print woman stopped anyone from approaching the purple haired man. Soon, it became apparent why.

He had charged up a powerful attack, vines bursting from the walls, and nothing they did would cut them. Zeref appeared to get close to cutting one, but he was immediately struck down by another one, enough to hold him down but not to knock him out. The rest of the mages were soon out for the count, having no defence against the attack.

And that was how Mavis and Makarov found them, hours later. Burried in awful, crushing defeat.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N I don't own Fairy Tail. Hope you enjoy the chapter! :D**

"They... They took Natsu... I couldn't do anything." Zeref said hollowly. The mages had gathered in an inn in a nearby town, and had bandaged their wounds. Now they were on their way to healing, it was time for questions, and the first and most obvious one had been 'what the hell happened?'.

"And Erza." Jellal sounded awful. He hadn't stopped screaming since they had taken her, the one with the helmet looking back to smirk at him, mouthing the words 'sweet revenge' at him.

"Don't forget Lucy. Jose took her back to her father." Gray added darkly.

"Why them, though?" Juvia sniffed. Mavis patted her on the shoulder comfortingly, as the small girl was sitting between Juvia and Zeref.

"It was because we messed with them." Jellal said dully. "We attacked them and this is their revenge. Who knows what they're going to do?"

Once again, Makarov noted that Zeref looked like he knew more than he was letting on, and made a mental note to question the former dark mage later. Everyone was feeling bitter and numb.

"Can this day get any worse?" Gray asked, his tone flat.

Just then, Yukino burst into their room, looking incredibly worried. Sting was hot on her heels, looking frantic.

"Have any of you seen Rogue?" She asked shrilly. Everyone shook their heads, panic starting to kick in. All eyes turned to Laxus, who had been his partner. Laxus was swearing under his breath and desperately trying to remember the last time he had seen the shadow dragon slayer.

"Oh God... The last time I saw him was when we entered the circular room. I lost him after that. I completely forgot..." Laxus gasped, horrified and already filled with self loathing.

"You... What?" Sting choked.

"I forgot Rogue." Laxus repeated quietly, sickened with himself.

"How... HOW COULD YOU?" Sting screamed.

"It was after I saw Ivan and the last of the memory charm broke. Afterwards, I went straight for Jose..." Laxus admitted. Makarov looked up sharply. Laxus had seen Ivan?

"THAT'S NO EXCUSE! WHO KNOWS WHERE HE IS? HOW COULD YOU? SOME LEADER YOU ARE!" Sting exploded. They all knew that most of his anger came from his fear for Rogue, but he stormed off after his outburst and no one had the chance to comfort him. The sound of Levy yelling at Jet and Droy gave them all a bitter, fresh reminder that they had also lost Gajeel to Phantom Lord.

"How have things fallen apart so quickly?" Makarov asked sorrowfully.

* * *

Lucy gulped. She still had her keys, those at least she had kept. The maids she was handed to had some sympathy and let her keep them. Jose had told them all that she wasn't particually skilled as a mage, so they decided that it would be safe to let her keep them, as a relic of her old life as a mage. Lucy was filled with nothing but a boiling anger. They had taken her away from her family, they had brought her back here. They thought she was nothing but a silly little princess that would never be strong enough to make a difference, a dumb, pretty girl who would do as she was told and marry for money. Well, she wasn't going to do any of those things. She knew who she loved and it wasn't some pampered prince, it was someone she could trust with her life, fight beside. Someone it was her turn to save. Someone who had been carried away by a woman in a leopard print kimono. Hell was the price to pay, for making him suffer anymore, and she would make sure of it.

Lucy walked stiffly to her father's office, flanked by smiling servants. "He'll be so glad to see you again." One of them whispered soothingly, but it did little to help Lucy. She was dreading seeing her father again, but at the same time, she wanted to give him a real piece of her mind, and her inner Fairy Tail mage loved the idea.

"Enter." The cold, distant voice her father snapped her out of her thoughts. The servants virtually shoved her through the door. It slammed behind her, and she stared nervously at her father. He didn't even look up. "I see you have returned. Or more accurately, been delivered by Master Jose." He said coldly, still writing.

"Yes." She said flatly, praying that none of her anger leaked into her voice.

"Being a mage was foolish. As a career, it held no future, I am disapointed in you, Lucy. However, that doesn't matter at the moment. A wealthy young man has offered you his hand in marriage, and you shall accept. I expect you to give birth to a male heir for the Heartfillia line and-"

"No." Lucy cut him off halfway through his long list of what he wanted.

"What?" He looked outraged.

"No, you heard me. I won't do it. I'll be a mage if I want to, and I'm not letting you have any say in what I do anymore, not after I hardly saw you for all those years. You're not my father, and you never will be!" She cried. "I have found a real family now. I have so many brothers and sisters. I found love." She yelled at her father. "And that was more than you ever gave me."

"Lucy, I order you-" He began sternly.

"No! I refuse to be ordered around by someone like you! You will never come after Fairy Tail again. Did you know you're partly responsible for my friends being kidnapped and possibly tortured? You deserve this; Open, Gate of the Water Bearer, Aquarius!"

With a bright golden flash, the water spirit was summoned into the room by Lucy's tears. She didn't even look back at the crying Lucy, but glared at the man in front of her.

"You," The mermaid hissed darkly. "HOW DARE YOU? YOU COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY RUINED MY BET! AFTER CAREFUL YEARS OF PLANNING, I FINALLY PREDICTED WHEN THE BRAT WAS GOING TO GET A BOYFRIEND. SHE WAS SO CLOSE, AND I WOULD'VE WON, BUT NO, YOU JUST HAD TO MAKE THAT DARK GUILD INTERRUPT!" She screamed at him, lashing out with her water attacks. Jude let out an alarmed shout but it was drowned out by her furious attacks. After the water spirit was done, she turned back to Lucy. "This is the first and last time I'm going to say anything remotely supportive or nice to you, so listen up." She snapped. Lucy stared at her spirit. "Go get your boyfriend. Give 'em hell!" She ordered with a smirk, before disappearing with a flash of light.

Lucy saluted the air, before jumping out the window and running, changing into a star dress form to get out of the stuffy dress she had been forced into. She decided to quickly stop at her mother's grave, despite it being one of the first places the people who worked for her father would look for her. She knelt down by the gravestone and bowed her head, so the stone couldn't see her tears. "I-I'm sorry, Mum." She said quietly. "But this is the choice I've made and I'm going to follow my heart. I hope that where ever you are, you can accept it." She started to stand up, turning to face the stone, only to be forced to cover her eyes. A bright golden light was shining and it was forming words. Lucy stared at them in wonder, heart lifting.

 _Dearest Lucy,_

 _If you are reading these words then I have passed from this world. I am deeply sorry for leaving you, my child. I hope that you continue to grow into a fine young woman. I know by now that you have inherited my magic, so I leave you my favoured magic weapon. It is a whip, infused with celestial magic, called River of the Stars. It is yours to use now. Follow your heart, my dearest daughter. Remember, no matter where you are or what you become, I will be watching over you._

 _With all the love in the world, Layla._

Coiled on the grave was a whip. It looked ordinary, but when Lucy picked it up, she saw a crackle of magic pass through it and she could sense its power. It was a while before she could find her voice. "Thank you so much, Mum... I'm going to do just that." She whispered, turning away and walking away, back towards Fairy Tail.

* * *

Rogue couldn't tell how long he had been trapped in the darkness, bound by chains that dug into his skin and were rubbing his wrists raw. They sucked at his magic, and it was killing him. Every second, he could feel more of his strength ebbing away. He couldn't help but think of why he was here. His leader had forgotten him, he had been struck down. Never in his life had he felt so worthless. Was he really so forgettable? Not to mention how cold the guard was to everyone, him in particular.

"You still alive in there?" She yelled, coming over to his cell.

"Yes." He said back, too tired to make a smart remark.

"God, you're pathetic, _Ryos_." She sneered.

"I know, Minerva. I know." He said quietly. Yes, his prison guard was also his childhood friend. Yet she clearly wasn't the girl who would sneak away from her father and play with him anymore. She had made that clear, she hated him now. She didn't need him, she didn't need anyone. But now, no one needed him, everyone was moving on. Sting had Yukino, so he wasn't needed there anymore, and the rest of the dragon slayers were moving on. He hadn't had a clue who Ryos was, who he was, so he couldn't find anyone. Everyone else had friends, someone special, but not him. He liked Yukino, he really did. She was a great friend, she was kind and easy to get along with. She was great for Sting. The couple practically radiated light. Not him. He was the one who would be stuck in the shadows forever. He was the one who had given up. He was the one who was lonely, one half of a broken heart. A broken heart that would never be fixed.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N Hai, me again. I'm updating as soon as I can... As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail. Hope you enjoy!**

"Good, you're finally awake." A voice sneered. Erza groggily stared at him, her head was throbbing. She was chained to a wall, and Natsu was beside her, looking equally confused.

"My name is Jackal." Erza blinked the black dots from her vision to see the one with ears. "You're our prisoners now." He told them smugly. Erza exchanged a glance with Natsu. Where was he going with this?

"When are you going to get to the point?" Natsu yawned. Jackal narrowed his eyes.

"Fine. I guess you need to know, else Mard Geer wouldn't have instructed me to tell you. Do you both know why you're here?" He asked them.

Natsu didn't seem to get it, so Erza answered. "Is it because you're punishing Jellal and Zeref for whatever they did to your guild and the best way to get to them is by going to people who are close to them."

"Correct." He laughed. Natsu stared at him.

"How do you know about me and Zeref?" He asked, tilting his head to the side.

"We have spies everywhere." The woman with the helmet said, walking into the room. "I mean everywhere."

"Good to know." Erza muttered.

"So, are you just going to leave us chained to a wall?" Natsu asked loudly. Erza glared at him. Did he have to bring it up? They might punish him for his rudeness.

"I'm so glad you asked." The hawk helmet woman crowed, instantly confirming Erza's suspicions. "We are going to destroy you the same way your brother destroyed us."

"What did he do?" Natsu asked, voice betraying his dread.

"Do you know what demon particals are?" She asked. Both of them shook their heads. "They are particles of monsters. They are incredibly painful to touch, but if one can absorb them, they gain a powerful ablility called curse. It is similar to magic but it is different in several ways."

"I don't get what this has to do with Zeref." Natsu insisted.

"Yes, I was coming to that. During his time as a member or Tartaros, he studied them a lot. When this guild was no longer of use to him, he used them to make a bomb to destroy several of our projects and to mask his escape." She spat.

"I don't believe you." Natsu challenged. The woman raised an eyebrow and tugged off her helmet. There was a massiv X shape mark across her face, in dark markings that just seemed evil.

"That is what happened when I got too close to the bomb." She hissed. "Still don't believe me, summon the 'way out' he gave you."

Natsu glared at her, but with a loud 'poof' sound a book dropped onto the floor in front of him. The woman took off the armour that looked like claws and touched it, only to flinch back. She showed them her hand. There was a black mark on it, the same as her face. Natsu sagged with defeat.

"He's different now." He muttered.

"And now it's my time to not believe you." She shrugged. "And if he has changed, then it'll make my revenge so much sweeter." She smirked.

"What are you going to do?" Erza asked. She was getting really worried now. This looked even worse now.

"Simple. We're going to use demon particles. You'll be one of the monsters his brother created and the very thing your Jellal tried to destroy."

* * *

Gajeel, unlike the others did not wake up in a cell. He was tied to an office chair. He was in a stuffy room, and Jose was sitting at the desk opposite him.

"What the flaming fu-" He yelled.

"Please hold your tongue." Jose sighed. "I understand your confusion, but I would really rather not have to use a silence spell on you."

Gajeel glared at him.

"Despite your guild's petty efforts, we succeeded in giving the Heartfillia girl to her father, Tartaros took their payment and Raven Tail, despite how poorly they performed, also took their payment. Face it, you lost." He sneered.

Gajeel opened his mouth to say something very insulting and rude.

"Now, now. I happen to have an offer for you," The man said smoothly. "would you join our guild?"

Gajeel, who had spent the whole speech adding to his insult, decided to tell Jose exactly what he thought of that offer.

Jose's face flushed red. "Let me rephrase that." He said through gritted teeth. "You are going to join our guild."

"Let me reprashe my answer." Gajeel shot back. He then proceeded to say, if possible, something ruder.

"Gah! We just want your magic." Jose screamed in fustration.

"Nice to know. I'm not joining your **** **** of a guild." Gajeel grunted. "You'll have to force me. And trust me, old man, that's gonna be hard." He said darkly at the end.

"I-I, damn you, I can hurt you in so many ways." Jose bellowed.

"Nothing a worm like you can do will hurt me." Gajeel laughed.

"Why you little..." Jose trailed off, trying to think of something insulting.

"Let's face it. I'm here because your men took a cheap shot at me. Heck, I could probably get out of here in about a single minute. I am becoming more and more ashamed that I was kidnapped by your guild." Gajeel grumbled.

"You can't break out." Jose snapped.

Gajeel stared at him. He moved his hands, straining against the cuffs. There was a loud snapping sound and the metal fell to the ground. "Magic or no magic, my skin is harder than iron." He told Jose. The man screamed and scrambled backwards. Gajeel towered over him, leering down.

"Weak." Gajeel spat, unleashing a powerful roar attack at close range. He turned away from the twitching Jose and started walking.

"A guild this bad isn't worth my time." Gajeel snorted, not once looking back.

* * *

It had been a week since everyone had been captured. The light guilds were finally ready to take action, having healed and contacted others, who were willing to help.

"So far we have Zeref, Jellal, Juvia, Gray and Mavis for attacking Tartaros." Makarov announced. "Will anyone else join them?" Other guilds, who were either sympathetic or wanted a chance to attack dark guilds had joined them.

"I'll go." Lyon announced.

"As will I." Jura nodded.

"Count me in!" Milianna added.

"I will also accompany them." Kagura said calmly.

"I'll be going too." Meredy added.

"Right, thank you. The attack party can leave whenever, but I request that you at least stay for the meeting." Makarov told them. "Next we have the group attacking Raven Tail, who would like to join? So far we have Wendy, Sting, Yukino and Laxus."

"Wendy... I'll go." A small pink haired girl announced. "My name is Sherria."

"Very well, who else?" Makarov asked.

"Men, I shall grant the team with my glorious presence." Ichiya exclaimed.

"Then we'll go too!" The trimen chorused.

"Right, and Lucy-"

"I don't need rescuing." A voice announced. Lucy burst through the doors. Everyone stared at her in shock.

"H-How?" Makarov choked.

"Oh... I may or may not have summoned Aquarius on my dad..." Lucy admitted sheepishly.

Everyone who knew who Aquarius was turned pale, and the others guessed from their expressions.

"If it helps, I blew several holes into where ever Phantom Lord were hiding. I didn't look at a map." Gajeel also emerged into the room. "Put me in whichever team is going after the ***** who took Rogue."

"Fine. And Lucy, do you want to join the group that is going for Tartaros." Makarov asked.

"You bet I do. Hell yeah."

"C-Can I join the group attacking... Raven Tail?" A timid voice asked. The group turned to stare at Lisanna. "I want to prove myself."

"Lisanna, everyone knows you were forced into that guild. You don't need to prove yourself." Juvia gasped.

"I know... It's just I've done so many things wrong over the years, that I want a chance to make things right... So can I?" She sniffed.

"Of course. Would you like to join her, Elfman?" Makarov asked kindly. They all knew that the man had been very emotional since seeing his little sister again.

"Yes. Thank you for this manly oppertunity, Master." The brute sniffed. Mira smiled, yet she felt sad that she couldn't go with them. She was part of the backup, along with several others.

"Is everyone okay with this, if you're not, speak now." No one said anything.

"Then, go. Go and retrieve our friends and destroy the darkness." Makarov cried.


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N Here's the next chapter :D Just to let you know, I've decided to do the rescue in two parts, with one guild at a time. Sorry if it's confusing or if you wanted to know what's going on with Rogue... Latest manga chapter anyone? As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail!**

"Is this their guild hall?" Milianna whispered.

"It appears so." Lyon hissed back.

"Yes. This is the Tartaros guild hall. My brother and Erza are being held in there." Zeref told them.

"When do we attack? Do we have a plan?" Lucy asked.

"Yes." Mavis spoke slighly louder, but not enough to give them away. The group gathered around her to listen.

"We'll have a small force to go and find Erza and Natsu. That will be Jellal, Kagura, Zeref and Lucy. The rest of us will attack head on and cause the biggest distraction we can. Then, once we have taken care of our enemies, we will storm their base and help look. We will travel as one group, as our aim is to come back alive, not to cover ground. That will be the smaller group's task." She told them, eyes serious. This was not the time for kidding around.

"Right. Those who aren't in the main group, stick together and run." Mavis instructed. "Now..."

"CHARGE!"

* * *

The second they entered the building they were attacked. Thankfully, Jura seemed to know what to do in a situation like this one and created several rock walls, which they greatfully ducked behind and sprinted for a corridor.

"I know the layout of this building. Follow me." Zeref called to them. Seeing as they had no other option, they followed. Fortunately, they only met one or two members, who were quickly cut down by Kagura.

"We're here. They're probably being held here." Zeref panted. "Be on guard."

"Why would they be in a lab of all places?" Lucy asked.

"I hope I'm wrong, but if I'm not, we're in trouble." He told her grimly. They walked through the eerily quiet lab. The white walls and floors glistened. It was like everything was leading up to some big horribe experiment. Lucy couldn't have been more right.

There at the end of the lab, pushed right back against the wall were two lacrimas, both massive.

"What the hell are they?" Jellal asked, squinting. Zeref didn't answer but instead raced towards them. Not knowing what else to do, eveyone followed.

"No..." Zeref whispered, horrified. He stared at the pained face of his brother. Both Natsu and Erza were floating in lacrimas, dark markings covering their skin, both wearing expressions of pain.

"Well, we figured you'd be here soon enough." A familiar voice boomed. The guy with ears jumped down from a pannel in the ceilling and faced them. "It's going pretty well, isn't it?" He asked them.

"What are you doing to them?" Jellal yelled desperately.

"Oh? We're just doing the same thing that Zeref did to us. And we figured that we should do it to her too." He shrugged. "It's nearly done, just a little more..." He snapped his fingers, and something was released into the lacrimas in a stream of bubbles. The two Fairy Tail mages thrashed around and Zeref let out a cry of horror as more dark marks crawled over thier skin.

"Stop it!" Zeref cried. Lucy hadn't said anything, but had sunk to her knees by the tank, hand streching up so it mirrored Natsu's.

Jackal laughed at them. "Pathetic. You can't stop it. You're too late."

"Watch me." Zeref spat, hands glowing with dark energy. He shot some of it at Jackal, who laughed and it exploded, doing no damage, and as they noticed, it was directed far away from the lacrimas.

"Well, we can't have them dying on us, not when we're so close to having two new members." He told them in answer to their questioning glances. This seemed to be the last straw for Zeref, who turned back to the lacrimas, seemingly torn.

"What makes you think that they'll join you?" Kagura asked, her voice forced calm.

"It's simple. Demon particles... Well, they can do many things." Jackal told them, not really telling them anything.

"That's true." Zeref spoke, yet there was something off about his voice. Jackal stared at him in horror.

"Did you really think that I'd abandon my own research so close, when it could be the key to saving my brother?" Zeref asked mockingly. The rest of the group backed away uncertainly, they had never seen this side of the former dark mage. Things seemed to get worse when they got a glipse of his eyes. They had turned a shocking red.

"You... What?" Jackal choked. "There's no way that you used the particles on yourself..."

Zeref laughed. It was a cold and empty sound. "Of course I did, you're right for once Jackal. In fact, I went the furthest anyone has ever gone." He said. "So much that I gained unthinkable power, but it really does bring out the worst of someone, like now..."

"Careful Zeref." Jellal warned.

Zeref glanced at the with those cold, red eyes. It made them all shiver. He turned back to Jackal without saying anything. The member of Tartaros seemed to be particually worried now. "S-Stop." He yelled, hands glowing as he prepared an explosion. He didn't even have time to unleash his power as dark waves rolled off of Zeref, and as they reached Jackal, the power dimmed and he collpased to the floor, eyes glassy. He was dead.

"Nice try, Zeref." Another familiar voice echoed through the lab. It was the woman with the hawk helmet. "But you're too late. It's done now."

Everyone stared. It was true. In the lacrimas, Natsu and Erza were beginging to open their eyes.

* * *

Mavis felt a familiar dark energy. She knew this feeling all too well. Zeref had lost it, he'd been forced to use his darkest powers. That meant that she had to get down there and provide a balance fast, or else they'd have to fight Zeref as well.

"We're doing good, nearly done." Jura informed them. There were only five mages left standing, and they all seemed very stong, definately part of the main force of Tartaros. The small ace of Fairy Tail turned back to the member she was fighting. His face looked like a skull and he told her his name was Keys.

She turned to him. "Sorry, but I'm going to have to end this now." She told him softly.

"Funny," He remarked. "I was going to say the exact same thing."

Mavis didn't waste any time on a witty response. "Fairy Glitter." She cried. The room filled with golden light, focusing on Keys. By the time the light faded, Keys was collapsed on the floor, knocked out.

There was a loud clapping noise. Mavis blinked, realising that everyone else was done with their battles, and that they were cheering.

"A truly impressive display of power, Miss Mavis." Jura complimented.

"Was he the last one left?" Lyon asked.

"'Fraid not." A female voice announced. "You lot still have to deal with me."

Gray stared at the woman in a mixture of shock and horror. He seemed to know her, and they did look similar. She had the same dark hair as him, though her eyes were a light blue. In fact, they seemed as though any other time, the woman would be cheerful and kind, but now she was serious.

She paused and blinked. Staring at Gray.

"You know," She said mostly to herself. "This wasn't exactly the renunion I was hoping for."


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N Heh, hope you all enjot the plot twitst XD**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail.**

"M-Mu.. M-Mi..." Gray couldn't seem to form words. He seemed to be trying to say something yet he was too choked up to form the words. Or maybe the power of his emotions was just that strong, that he couldn't capture the raw feeling with words. The woman seemed to feel his pain.

"G... Gray?" She asked, blinking.

"Do you two know each other?" Milianna asked curiously.

"I'll... I'll stay to... Fight her." Gray said stiffly, as his eyes glared holes into her Tartaros guild mark.

"Yes... You'll be a... Worthy opponent." She stared at his Fairy Tail guild mark.

"I can handle this. Go and find Flame for brains and Erza." He told them. The woman shrugged.

"I'm not going to stop you. Go ahead. I didn't really like the idea of well... What they did to the prisoners." She shrugged.

* * *

The rest of the group turned to leave, and Lyon stepped closer to Juvia and whispered in her ear.

"This is the first and last time I will ever promote this in my entire life, but you need to stalk Gray." He hissed. "Keep an eye on him, for me, Juvia, please. Something about that woman is familiar. I don't know why, it keeps slipping away, but Gray might need the help." He told her in a quiet, urgent voice. Juvia nodded, her eyes showing how serious she was. If it was for Gray, she'd do anything. So, she lingered by the doors, watching the two wizards, while the rest of the group marched into the unnknown.

* * *

"Gray... Is it really you?" The woman asked, voice hoarse all of a sudden.

"I was going to ask the same. Are you really... Mika?" He asked, expression unreadable.

"Yes... So... I thought you died." She screamed suddenly. "I thought that I was left standing in the ruins after the attack, having lost everything. I thought that you... That Silver..." She sobbed.

"After I woke up, all that was left of the town was ashes. A woman found me and took me in. She taught me ice make magic." Gray told her in a strangled voice.

 _Flashback:_

 _"Gray, Gray, wake up!"_

 _Gray blearily blinked awake, yawning. His father seemed to be shaking him. "Thank God, Gray we need to leave." Something in his tone convinced Gray not to argue. Something big was happening. Something so big, that he couldn't escape, and it was crushing him._

 _"Dad... What's going on?" He asked, clutching his father's hand._

 _"Our town is being attacked, something to do with a dark guild under Zeref. Everything's gone to hell, we'll have to run for it." Silver told him grimly._

 _"W-What about Mum?" Gray asked timidly._

 _"I'm here." She told him gentley, taking his other hand. "We'll all get out of this together, you'll see."_

 _"R-Right... Promise?" Gray asked them, terrified._

 _"Of course. We promise." Silver told his son warmly. Together, they raced from the house. The air was alive with the sound of screams and explosions. There was a loud crashing noise and the house next to them came crumbling down, bricks and dust spewing from the rubble. There was a loud scream, someone was still alive._

 _"Oi, Deliora, nice one, but you missed some survivors. Zeref ain't gonna be happy with you if you let them go!" A male voice called._

 _"On it, get on with your own duty, Lullaby." Someone called back._

 _A bulky body cut through the smoke, striding towards them. The figure waved a hand and Mika was blown away, sent plunging into the smoke. She was gone. Lost. The explosion seemed so loud, so deafening that there was no way she could have survived. Gray let out a wail, but it was drowned out by Silver's scream: "Mika!"_

 _"One down, two to go." The man cackled. He waved a hand and a magic circle flared to life. There was another explosion, and it burned. It hurt so much that Gray fell greatfully into the darkness, wondering dimly why his father looked so worried._

 _Little did he know that when he woke up, he'd see his father's pale face, find himself pinned under his lifeless body, being shielded by his father from the rubble that had stolen his last family member's life. Ur and Lyon heard his scream of pain and loss and found him, desperately trying to shake his father awake. Years later, Gray would still wake up, screaming for his father to open his eyes._

 _Mika had been blasted into rubble, hidden by the thick, billowing smoke. The rest of the building had collapsed, but a wall had protected her. She had woken after the battle had long finished. Day after day, she wandered through the burnt remains of her town, calling until her voice failed, searching with empty eyes. She couldn't be alive anymore. Not when she'd lost her family. She was about to give up. Just curl up and die, join her family once more, when she was found. A search party took her in, keeping her safe, offering their support. She eventually recovered. The kind people offered her to join their guild, to teach her magic. Overcome, she had asked why, too confused to connect the dots. It was all for Zeref, to make sure he got what he so dearly deserved. So, what else could she do? She had nothing to live for, not anymore._

"Silver... So that's how he died." Mika sniffed, hugging her son. "I'm so, so sorry Gray... If I had known for a second that you were alive... I'm sorry!" She wailed.

"I'm sorry. If I had been stronger..." He cried.

"Hush, Gray. You were a child, there was nothing you could do." She told him softly. Juvia wondered if Gray would ever forgive her for listening to this, feeling sick.

"Speaking of things no one could do... Are you going to free them? The little boy and girl?" She asked, looking up suddenly. Gray looked up.

"Natsu and Erza? Yeah... That's why we're here." Gray told her.

"Good. Since I'm not going to fight my own son, I may as well help you. I hardly want to stay here, it's too grim. No one deserves what happened to those guys..." She told him, brushing the hair out of his eyes.

Juvia probably would've been fine if she just left there, leaving Gray and his mother to have their moment. Yet she couldn't, not after what she'd seen. Someone else had entered the room, and that someone was preparing an attack. She had to take action.

"I always knew that you'd be a traitor, Mika!" He cried, sending a magic spear at her. Juvia let out a shrill scream and sent a water slicer at the spear, cutting it in half.

"Water lock." She cried, trapping the man in a bubble of water. For a second, all three of them stared at the man flailing in the water. Then Juvia turned to the mother and son and bowed her head.

"Juvia is sorry. She shouldn't have listened in. It was wrong of her." She sniffed, looking at the floor.

"Wow, little lady, you are a life saver." Mika laughed.

"Juvia? You stayed?" Gray asked.

"Juvia is sorry. She was worried." She whispered. She wouldn't tell him about Lyon. If he was going to be mad at anyone, it should be her. After all, it was all her fault.

"Thank you. If you weren't there..." Gray shuddered and wrapped his arms around her.

"Gray... Isn't mad?" She asked, barely daring to believe it.

"Well, I would be, but you were just worried, so I can't really be mad at you for that." He told her, smiling.

"Hey, Gray. Is she your girlfriend?" Mika asked, grinning evily.

"I-I... What?" Gray spluttered, while Juvia swooned in the background.

"Man, it's too easy... Oi! Are we gonna save these kids or not?" Mika yelled, trying to gain their attention.

"Yes mother." Gray rolled his eyes, smiling. It felt good to be able to say that now.

* * *

The lacrimas exploded. Shards of something like glass were sent flying everywhere. Erza stepped down onto the floor. The woman with the hawk helmet was laughing.

"E-Erza?" Poor Jellal sounded terrified, as Erza had a blank expression on her face and she hadn't even blinked since she broke out.

"Are... Are you alright?" He asked. She turned and stared at him, eyes dull. Slowly, she moved her hand, streching it out. In an instant, she was holding a sword, but it was a lot different than her usual swords. This one was ptich black, and it seemed a lot more harsh and plain evil. In a split second, she had turned the sword so she was holding it properly, then sent it plunging towards Jellal's heart.


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail.**

Kagura reacted quicker than Jellal. She had jumped in front of him and blocked the blow with her own sword.

"Moron. Concentrate." She snapped at him. She turned to Erza. "Why are you doing this? This isn't you." She hissed.

"That's true." The woman sounded amused. "They aren't acting of their own free will. Mard Geer is using a little mind control to keep them in line. Oh, and good luck calling out to them, they're trapped in their deepest fears." She smiled, a cold sickening smirk crossing her face.

"Natsu? What's wrong?" Lucy asked timidly. He responded by sending a huge torrent of crimson flames at her. She screeched and ducked out of the way. There was a loud popping noise and Loke was suddenly next to her.

"Let me handle this." He told her.

"You can't- he'll kill you!" She screamed.

"Nah, don't have so little faith in me, Princess." He laughed.

"Well, this seems to be going well, I'll leave it to you two." The woman with the helmet said smugly, turning away. She was about to leave the room when something grabbed onto her wrist. Gasping, she turned around and stared at Zeref in horror.

"Where do you think you're going?" He snarled.

"W-What are you doing?" She gulped. Something about those red eyes of his just seemed so unnerving.

"Undo the mind control." He ordered. "And I'll let you live. Possibly."

She was terrified. The air suddenly seemed so much colder, and she was so aware of how alive she was. How frail her life was when she was staring death in the face.

"I... I can't only Mard Geer can." She stuttered. "Please don't-"

She was cut off as Zeref unleashed his death magic. She fell to the floor with a thump, face still frozen in terror. He didn't spare her a second glance.

"Loke!" Lucy screamed. The leader of the zodiacs was sent flying into a wall with a sickening crunch. He disappeared in a shower of golden sparks, mouthing his apology to Lucy. Natsu moved away from where the lion had faded, turning to Lucy. She flinched but didn't run, which was pretty brave of her.

"Natsu... Stop, please." She begged, starting to cry. Natsu paused, staring at her tears, something flickering in his gaze for a second.

"Natsu... Are you in there somewhere?" She asked desperately. Again his eyes cleared for just a second. Slowly, he nodded, before his head jerked painfully to the side, and any emotions his eyes once held were gone.

Zeref sighed and walked up behind his brother. "Hey. Mard Geer's controlling you, huh. Does that mean he can hear what I say?" He wondered. He then proceeded to call whoever Mard Geer was some incrediably rude words. Gajeel and Rogue would be proud. Natsu launched into another attack, and Zeref's red eyes narrowed.

"Well, isn't old Mard taking that well." He muttered.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kagura was having a little trouble with Erza. Well, it was more like a ton of trouble, as the demon particles seemed to have given the red haired warrior a few more armours and weapons. At the moment, she was wearing a black and gold armour, and fighting with the same black sword from earlier, and despite the sword being completely unfamiliar to all of them, she seemed to be pretty good at using it.

"Stop being useless and help." Kagura yelled, blocking another blow.

"But-" He protested.

"Look, just because you love her... What do you think that she's going to think if she regains her senses and finds that she has killed you because you were a slow moron?" She snapped. Jellal blushed but didn't say anything, staring at Erza for a second. Then he nodded.

"Heavenly body magic: Meteor!" He yelled, crashing into Erza. She turned and punched him in the face, though she recoiled slightly as the magic burned her. Jellal winced from the force of her blow. Sure, she'd punched hard before, but now her blows seemed to be superpowered, and it wasn't a good thing.

"Erza... Stop this, please." He coughed. Something about the words seemed to register and she blinked, hesitating for a second. Kagura used the oppertunity to barge into Erza, sending her sword clattering far away. Before Erza could move, Kargura held her blade near her throat.

"Don't even think about moving. If you do, you'll be killed before you can blink." Kagura threatened. Apartently, whoever Mard Geer was didn't have a sense of humour, as Erza widened her eyes and stared at Kagura.

* * *

Natsu was flung into a wall by Zeref just as the rest of the group entered the room.

"What the hell?" Gray yelled.

"They're being controlled by Mard Geer. And they seem to have been powered up by something called demon particals." Lucy explained rapidly.

"Oh no..." Mavis walked past them. She marched up to Zeref, with such a fierce expression on her tiny face it was almost comical. Zeref stared at her with his alarming crimson eyes, expression revealing nothing. She stormed up to him, hand glowing with a golden tint. She reached up and slapped him in the face. Hard.

He blinked, his eyes turning back to their usual colour. He stared at Mavis, then at Natsu, who was struggling to get out of the wall.

"Did I do that? Oops, looks like I went overboard." He laughed weakly. Then he yelped as Mavis stomped on his foot.

"Moron! Something like this always happens when I'm not here!" She yelled at him. "I was so worried that you would be lost to the darkness again." She carried on ranting, tears springing to her eyes.

"I hate to break what I'm sure is a very touching moment, but we need some help here!" Jellal screamed.

"What? Oh yeah, I think I know what to do here." Thankfully, Mavis wasn't called a genius for nothing.

"Meredy, form a link with Erza and Jellal. That should help. I'll deal with the Mard guy, oh, and Lucy, come here." Mavis called out.

Everyone shrugged and got to work, trusting Mavis, although they all seemed a bit doubtful when Jellal collapsed the second the spell was complete. Lucy and Mavis had talked in hushed tones for a bit before holding hands and chanting under their breaths. Zeref alone seemed to know what they were doing. Lucy eventually closed her eyes and her breathing slowed.

"I'm half waiting for a snore." Mika joked half heartedly.

"No, she's doing fine." Mavis said quietly. "I'm going to have to ask that no one interrupts me, as I'm about to do something very tricky with Fairy Particles. Don't worry, Zeref can explain what they are and how they will save them."

Everyone turned and fixed Zeref with dark stares. He gulped.

"Why is it always me?" He wailed.

* * *

Jellal blinked. One minute he had been linked to Erza and had been choking on an overwhelming sense of fear and dread that weren't his own. Yet now, he was in a cell. Rough iron bars, splattered with rust and grime blocked his escape, and the floor was cold and hard, the icy feeling seeping into his bones. In a corner, a group of children huddled together. He immediately recognised one to be Erza, as no one could mistake her beautiful red hair, even if it was tangled and matted.

Breathing in, he could smell the tang of salt in the air, and the bitter sea breeze slapped him in the face. Suddenly, he realised where he was. Somehow, he was back in the tower of heaven...

* * *

Lucy knew that she would have to find Natsu. She knew that she would be plunged into his deepest fear, but so far she had been walking through the dark, all her senses clouded and she was left only with the lingering sense of uncertaincy. Narrowing her eyes, she walked forwards, noting the gradual change in light. Slowly, the black faded to milky grey and eventually, blinding sunlight.

Her hands flew to her mouth as a gigantic shape loomed above her. There was a loud explosion and the dragon crashed to the ground. Then, fire errupted from the of the beast, and it let out a roaring cry before going still. Heart in her mouth, Lucy rushed over to where the flames had come from. Natsu was younger, only slightly but it was still a shock to Lucy. His face remained blank as the dragon fell still, and he turned away once the heaving breaths had stopped. Wincing, Lucy took in the blood on his hands. She followed him back to where the other dragon slayers were standing. With a jolt, she realised that Laxus hadn't yet got his scar.

"Alright," The lightning dragon slayer sounded tired. "One more then we can go back." In the distance, there was the sound of dragons fighting, echoing roars and deafening explosions.

"Wait, what's that?" Wendy asked, pointing into the thick smoke. A figure was approaching, and the first thing that they could see of him was the distinct glowing blue markings that dotted his body.

From the ever so slight widening of eyes of the seven dragon slayers, Lucy guessed that they had never seen another dragon slayer before. That was when it hit her. This was their first encounter with Acnologia.


	31. Chapter 31

Lucy watched in horror as Acnologia walked up to the dragon slayers. His eyes glinted with a malicious light and he was smirking, fangs gleaming.

"So, there are more like me." He stated. The dragon slayers prepared defensive stances, not saying a word.

"Well, this'll be interesting, who is stronger, I wonder?" He asked, hands glowing with power. Again, the dragon slayers preapred their attacks. Lucy's heart sank, even though this was a memory or a fear, she could already feel the difference in power. Yet the dragon slayers weren't going to give up, they weren't showing their fear. They were going to face it head on, even if it destroyed them.

* * *

"What?" Jellal whispered. Everywhere he looked, there were bars and metal. They were underground, so every breath resulted in coughing. It was so dry and cold, and dozens of tiny bodies were trembling, huddled together for the warmth that their pitiful rags could not offer. Jellal had noticed that he wasn't with the group, making him wonder exactly what memory Erza was stuck in, as he was fairly sure that other than one time, he had always been there with her.

So, he watched in confusion as Erza hid her head and sobbed into the old man's shoulders.

"They... They took Jellal and it was all my fault." She wailed.

A guard passing by smacked the cage bars with his metal bat, making everyone in the cell flinch. "Cut it out!" He snapped. Erza attempted to muffle her sobs while the rest of the children crowded around timidly.

"Is Jellal going to be okay?" One of them asked.

The old man, who Jellal soon recognised to be Grandpa Rob shrugged helplessly. "Knowing those guards, who knows. We can only hope."

"B-But..." One of the children, who he recognised to be Milianna sniffed.

"Don't worry, we'll get him back alive." One of the older ones reassured them. With a jolt Jellal recognised Simon... That reminded him that he still had to apologise to Simon, as the prank war that had passed between them had ended rather badly. In his defence, Jellal had no way of knowing that Simon was allergic to feathers.

"Yeah." Erza seemed to have stopped shaking and there was a determined fire in her eyes. "We will."

* * *

Lucy had been crying ever since Rogue had been punched into a wall, and considering how that happened almost at the start of the fight, she was pretty much out of tears by this point, as what she was seeing was too horrible to even cry at. Sting had just been thrown away and hit by a powerful roar attack, and as Acnologia had just transformed from his dragon form, the blast had been powerful and concentrated. Sting's form lay at the bottom of a large crater. Natsu, Gajeel and Wendy rushed forward and attacked Acnologia, Laxus following them, leaving Cobra and Rogue to go and check on Sting. Lucy faintly heard Cobra yell. "I can't hear his thoughts, but he's breathing!"

Rogue yelled something back, but it was too faint to hear. Lucy didn't have the enhanced senses of the dragon slayers, but she could tell from the magic energy in the air that Sting's dragon force had faded.

"I bet you think that you know my attacks." Acnologia chuckled all of a sudden. The four of the dragon slayers looked up in suprise. "You think you can predict them?" He asked darkly.

The fight resumed after that, but Lucy could tell that the dragon slayers were on edge, as Natsu's eyes would dart from side to side occasionally as he tried to predict what was coming next. All of a sudden, she felt cold all over and she just knew something bad was going to happen. Natsu attacked Acnologia with a flurry of punches to the face, creating an opening for Laxus, who darted in close, fist cloaked in lightning ready to be smashed into Acnologia's face. It was in that second, so fast that Lucy almost missed it, that Acnologia turned his arm into a dragon's talon and raised his leg to send Natsu sprawling away. He turned with a smirk and slashed his claws across Laxus' face. Said lightning dragon slayer cried out in pain and recoiled away. He slapped a hand to his face and Lucy had to turn away because the sight of the blood was so sickening. Even from where she was watching, she could smell the repulsive metallic stench.

Wendy rushed away from the battle, leaving Gajeel and Natsu to deal with Acnologia. Clearly, Acnologia had just increased his power, as another attack sent Laxus flying away. Wendy cried out and rushed forwards to help him. Cobra, who had travelled back with Rogue, who was laying Sting on the ground a safe way away from the battle, saw, or rather heard Acnologia's attack and jumped forwards, roughly shoving her out the way and taking the attack himself.

"Cobra!" Wendy screamed. He gave her a small smile before collapsing next to Laxus.

"Wow, three down already... Man, I'm disappointed." Acnologia called. Natsu let out a growl and tried to kick him in the face. Acnologia rolled his eyes and dodged, summoning a large blast and aiming it at Natsu and Gajeel. There were two howls of pain.

Lucy heard Rogue say something very rude and he rushed back into the fight, leaving Wendy to heal the three fallen warriors.

"Hey, Kid?" Laxus asked her, voice strained so she couldn't hear the pain that was shining in his eyes.

"Yes, Laxus?" She asked, surrounding him, Cobra and Sting with healing magic.

"Are my wounds fatal?" He grunted.

"No, but they're not good, and if they get infected-" She began timidly.

"Hah, infected my a***, I'll live, heal the others then get in the fight, they need you there." He told her firmly.

"Cobra?"

"Don't bother with me, other than this nasty gash on my leg I'm- stop, seriously, I'll be fine." The poison dragon slayer yelled, annoyed. Wendy squeaked and moved onto Sting.

"Hey, healing magic is unfair... Wait, it's your only hope... In that case, since you seem to need hope rather badly, have another person to heal!" Acnologia cackled, punching Rogue in the stomach, then trapping him between a wing attack. Wendy screamed as he was sent flying, ironically enough, exactly between Cobra and Laxus.

"Okay, that's enough of me being nice, you three are going to have to provide proper entertainment." Acnologia smirked. "And if not, well... You're familiar with death, aren't you?" He laughed.

Lucy felt sick as she watched Natsu, Gajeel and Wendy glance at each other then back at their fallen friends.

"Hey." Laxus called out.

"What?" Natsu didn't turn around.

"There's no use telling you to run, huh. Well, in that case, I'll give you my power." Laxus laughed weakly. There was a bright flash and Natsu was surrounded by an aura of fire and lightning. Lucy gulped. Cobra let out a snort, though Lucy suspected that it was covering a pained hiss.

"Well, I can hardly just sit here and let you all get beaten to death. And since I can't fight, Wendy, heads up."

"Gajeel. Take my remaining power." Rogue offered weakly.

"Lightning Flame Dragon mode."

"Poison Sky Dragon mode."

"Iron Shadow Dragon mode."

The three dragon slayers yelled together, rushing forward.

"Weilding two elements at once. Interesting." Acnologia mused. "This is going to be some fun after all."

* * *

Jellal had watched in horror as Erza started leading riots and causing a rebellion against the guards of the tower. Even as a young child, she was so brave and determined. He already knew the route she was taking, after all, he still had nightmares about being dragged down that hallway, and the torment afterwards.

"Jellal!" Erza screamed, bursting into the room. Jellal stared at the scene. His younger self was tied to a pillar and covered in multiple wounds.

"E-Erza." His younger self croaked.

"Jellal? Oh no, I'm sorry, I was so late." Erza cried, rushing forwards. Jellal already knew what was going to happen next, he remembered this. Erza had arrived like an angel after those long hours of torture and he was fairly sure he was dead until she started crying.

"This is all my fault!" She wailed.

"Yeah, it is. Where were you? I trusted you, but you never came." Jellal's blood turned to ice. This had never happened. He had mostly cried, hugged Erza and thanked her. Then she had cried, hugged him and apologised.

"B-But..." She protested weakly.

Unfortunately Imposter-Jellal, as he was now mentally called, didn't like this either. "B-But what? You just stood there and let them take me. You didn't do anything. All of your friends are going to end up dead like this one day, you're so pathetic. You let everyone down."

Erza had started crying now. "I'm sorry!" She sobbed.

The scene faded and they seemed to be floating in a black void. Jellal was suprised that his feet met solid ground as he walked forwards. Slowly, he put his arms around Erza, who was still a child, and hugged her close.

"It wasn't your fault." He told her softly. "You saved me. Now it's my turn to save you."

"Actually, it _was_ your fault." A cold voice cut in. Jellal looked up to see the purple ponytail of Mard Geer. "But you can fix it." He told Erza, glaring daggers at Jellal.

"Don't listen to him." Jellal pleaded.

"Come with me, you'll be stronger. You can protect them next time." Mard Geer ordered cooly, offering his hand to her. The small girl blinked, looking hopeful.

"Erza, don't listen... You were strong enough, you always protected me. Come with me, it's time we headed back to the others." Jellal whispered. Erza looked at him and seemed to recognise him, as her face lit up with a radiant smile and she took his hand. Mard Geer looked furious, but before he could do anything, he was attacked by a glittering golden light. As the world around him faded, Jellal could've sworn he heard Mavis giggling.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N Here's the next chapter, hope you all enjoy! :D**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. (sadly)**

Lucy had watched with a sense of awe and horror as the three powered up dragon slayers had fought Acnologia. While they seemed to be pushing him back little by little, they were being horribly wounded in the process. Lucy had noted, with some interest, that Wendy's hair had turned the same pink as it had in her dragon force.

Every second had been terrifying, and Lucy wondered how much longer this nightmare would go on for. Suddenly, a roar ripped through the air and Acnologia froze. He hastily unleashed his most powerful attack, a massive blast of what Lucy had learned was chaos energy.

"Well, we'll have to continue this another time. I have to say, it did become pretty interesting at the end, so I'll find you and we can finish this soon. You lot better get stronger... In fact, remember this: you can run for as long as you want, but I'll always be right behind you. And if you're not there to fight me. I'll go after the ones you love. Remember that, weaklings." Acnologia promised darkly, turning away and leaving the three dragon slayers to slowly faint, watching him vanish into the smoke.

Lucy nearly screamed when the scene suddenly changed. They were in some fancy room and she was looking at herself. It took a moment to sink in that for some reason, she was one of Natsu's worst fears.

"Really, Natsu?" She heard herself ask. Lucy inwardly flinched, that tone didn't sound good. "Hah, don't make me laugh. You actually though we were friends?" She laughed coldly. Lucy stared. What on earth was this.

"Honestly, I can't stand you, but I needed the protection. Now you're not needed." She sneered. Lucy took one look at the shattered look on Natsu's face and snapped. She rushed forward and punched her clone as hard as she could right in the face. Apparently, this broke whatever spell that had kept her from being seen as Natsu stared at her. (Seriously, the spell had been so annoying, she had experimented with a wide range of insulting hand gestures in front of Laxus)

"There are two Lucys?" Natsu asked, confused.

"This thing," Lucy kicked it in the shin. "Is not me. Hi Natsu." She said brightly at the end.

"I see. Is this another trick?" He asked dully. "You don't have to pretend to be nice, you know."

Lucy froze. "I'm not-"

"This," A voice interrupted. "Is getting really annoying."

Both Natsu, Lucy and Fake Lucy all turned to stare at the ponytail guy.

"Oh, you're Mard Geer." Lucy muttered.

"Well, I'll give credit to Mavis for sending people to pull my demons out of the illusions, and in one case it actually worked." He told them. Lucy was too busy fuming over the fact that Mard Geer had called Natsu 'his' like some pet and a demon to notice that the other Lucy had faded away.

"In fact, she was almost ready to recruit, but she was too sharp and noticed that Jellal was out of place in the vision, and was able to break free. However... Mavis didn't account for one thing. He has spent the past week dreaming of all his fears, most of which involve whoever the man with the markings was and betrayal. Do you really think that he'll trust you so easily now?" Mard asked, raising an eyebrow. Lucy turned to Natsu, who had been frozen by some sort of spell. When she looked at him, Mard Geer broke the spell and he blinked.

"Who the hell is this guy?" He asked, pointing at Mard Geer. Lucy refused to believe that Natsu wouldn't trust her and crushed him in a hug. Her heart sank as she felt him stiffen at her touch. She had an idea in that moment and leaned close to his ear.

"I'm sorry, I broke our promise. I wasn't here for a week." She whispered sadly. She heard him gasp and dared to hope... Her spirits soared as she was proven correct a second later, as he hugged her.

"Thank God, you're the real Lucy!" He yelled, grinning.

"Hey, I have ears you know!" She screamed at him.

"Yep, definately you. So weird." He was beaming now.

"Good to know that you're not depressed." She sighed happily.

"Hm... You insist on the belief that your friends would never betray you." Both of them jumped guiltily, having forgotten that he was even there. Goes to show how much they cared.

"Well they wouldn't. I mean, they came to save me and Erza, right?" Natsu challenged.

"No," Mard Geer sighed, looking genuinley sad- which Lucy instantly knew was fake. "I'm talking about your special friends, the other dragon slayers. Not a single one of them came to help you, the people from your former guild did."

Lucy raised an eyebrow at the 'former' part of his little speech. Natsu appeared to have deflated at the news. She put a hand on his shoulder, jolting him out of his thoughts. He looked up and grinned, something Lucy couldn't identify flickered in his eyes for a second, but it was gone before she was even sure she saw it.

"Hey, Luce, how to we get out of here?" He asked, once again ignoring Mard Geer.

"Sorry, I'm a bit late. You two get out of here." Mavis' voice called to them.

"Yeah, how?" Lucy screeched.

"Oh, that should be happening around now. Oh, and Natsu, sorry in avance for the headache." She giggled. Lucy grabbed onto Natsu's hand as the world around them slowly vanished.

* * *

"Uhh. My head..." Lucy groaned. She blinked open her eyes, finding herself still in the position she had been in before she entered Natsu's mind. Her eye twitched as she watched Meredy sigh and hand some jewl over to Juvia.

"Can you stop making bets about my life?" She screamed. Much to her annoyance, this caused Gray to scowl and pass more jewl to a woman who looked very similar to him. Since when did he get here?

Lucy glared at the entire group, which is probably why the loud explosion and rush of fire made her jump.

"Was... Was that Natsu?" Lyon asked slowly.

"Probably. Erza did the exact same thing." Kagura shrugged.

"Shouldn't we be worried, I mean, this... um... Marsh Beer guy could still be controlling them?" Milliana asked. Much to her suprise, Jellal burst out laughing.

"Man, that name is perfect! Make sure to call him that to his face!" Jellal snorted.

"And I wouldn't be worried... In fact... Three, two... One." Zeref added. By the time he reached one, there was a huge explosion from above them.

"What the hell is going on?" Gray asked.

"Juvia is scared." Juvia whimpered. This was probably only an act so Gray would comfort her. Gray opened his mouth to say something but Lyon knocked him out the way.

"Fear not, my lovely Juvia, for I shall protect you until my dying breath!" Lyon announced. Gray looked like he would like to do nothing more than to freeze Lyon solid and to leave him floating in some random lake.

"The hell you will!" Gray snarled, snatching Juvia back.

"Come on, we might get to see what they're doing to Mard Geer if we're quick!" Mavis called. Everyone followed her up the stairs, wondering when she had woken up.

* * *

It turned out that Natsu and Erza were already pretty good at using their new powers. They were battling Mard Geer, going straight after the man who had made their lives misery for the past week. Zeref poked his head around the door, then opened it wide for the whole group to see.

Erza now seemed to be using an entirely new katana that none of them had ever seen before. Well, they weren't really seeing it now, as she was using it so quickly, all they could see was a flash of gleaming metal.

Then Natsu was destroying pretty much everything in sight, using crimson flames with a golden core. He seemed to be pretty happy, considering the fact that he wasn't the one beating up Mard Geer. Suddenly he yelled something to Erza, who nodded and they swapped over.

"Huh." Gray managed to say. "They really don't like him, do they?"

As he said that, Natsu slammed Mard Geer into a wall. "Hey guys," He grinned. "Want to join us?"

Well, Fairy Tail had never been one to deny such a generous request and the other guilds were hardly going to be outdone.

And that is the story of how Master Makarov had his first and last heart attack. Thankfully, the team that had remained back at the temporary base was there and they were more than able to help him, so he made a full recovery. Unfortunately, all of his damned brats were laughing at the ridiculous number of zeros on the bill for the damage on Tartaros' property and the woodlands surrounding it.


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N Hi, sorry this is late, but I hope you all enjoy! As usual I don't own Fairy Tail.**

To be honest, nobody really wanted to plan anything. Raven Tail's base was a large stone building, with only one way in.

"Isn't anyone going to plan anything?" Yukino asked desperately.

"Yeah. Knock 'em all out 'till they give us Rogue." Laxus grunted.

"That plan is MANLY!" Elfman roared.

"Men." Ichiya agreed.

"You said that right, fearless leader!" The trimen agreed loudly.

"Another flawless plan." Sting nodded.

Yukino, Lisanna, Wendy and Sherria exchanged worried glances.

"Don't you think that we should just get on with attacking before we blow our cover?" Lisanna offered weakly.

Somehow, they all managed to hear her timid suggestion and charged down towards the base, screaming battle cries at the top of their lungs.

"Why do we even bother?" Sherria sighed.

* * *

The mages on the first floor seemed weak, and the entire experience of fighting was rather like a sandcastle trying to stand up to a tidal wave. Quickly, they worked their way downwards. Since they had no real plan, or any excuse for not having one, Lisanna didn't really question why she was running way ahead of everyone else with Yukino and Sting. Together, they raced down stairs and through hallways, one of the new spirits Lucy gave Yukino was helping them, something to do with gravity. Lucy had tried to give Yukino all of the keys Angel had given her, but Yukino had refused and the two had had a large argument over it. Yukino eventually accepted two keys, one being the one Angel wanted her to have and the other being the one she was using now.

"We should be getting closer, I can smell his scent." Sting called.

"Is there anyone there with him?" Yukino asked, raising her voice to be heard over the echoing of their footsteps.

"I think so, a guard, only one though!" Sting called out to them.

"Good." Lisanna said quietly. They had a chance after all.

"Hey, Ryos, it looks like your pathetic friends finally showed up." Minerva laughed. There was no response from the shadow dagon slayer. He had become painfully thin. It was partly because of the machine draining his magical energy, the equivelent to his life force. The other reason was that because of Minerva's taunts, the constant pain, the memories and unknown to anyone but himself, his shadow's constant whispering, he had stopped responding to anything and had refused food.

"Don't be so boring. I'm going to fight them now, cheer me on, childhood friend." She sneered, turning away. Only this time, she expected the lack of reaction.

The three mages skidded around a corner and they found themselves in what seemed to be the prison. Except they couldn't see much of it as their view was blocked by a dark haired woman, who was smirking.

"Give us back Rogue!" Sting bellowed.

"Who's Rogue?" If possible, the woman's smirk widened. "I don't know anyone called Rogue, but I was having a lovely chat with Ryos earlier."

"Who's Ryos?" Lisanna asked, narrowing her eyes. She had a pretty good idea, but she didn't want her fears to be confirmed, so she kept silent.

"Well, wouldn't you like to know. One thing I will tell you is that if you want to even have a chance of finding your friend, you'll have to get past me." She told them smugly.

"Well, your ego is so big, I look forward to beating the crap out of you." Everyone turned to see that Gajeel had followed them.

"Oh? What makes you think you'll even last a minute." She laughed arrogantly.

"You know," Gajeel grinned, eyes narrowing. "I was just about to say the same thing. You guys go on ahead, find Rogue."

"Thanks, Gajeel." Yukino smiled, and the three dashed off.

* * *

Sting was tracking Rogue by smell. It turned out that they were a corner away from the cells.

"Which one is he in?" Lisanna asked, scanning the cells, but she couldn't see anyone who resembled what she'd been told.

"His scent leads to... Here..." Sting trailed off, staring inside the cell, face betraying his horror. In one of the cells, a black haired boy was huddled in a corner, hands over his ears, eyes squeezed shut. He was incrediably skinny, and there were dishes of food in the corners of his prison, untouched.

"Rogue, is that you?" Sting called softly. Rogue stirred and stared at Sting, but it was like he was seeing right through him. One red eyes was slightly brighter than the other and the effect was quite unnerving.

"Take Over: Phoenix!" Lisanna said, quickly changing her form. She slashed her golden talons across the bars, and the metal was cut cleanly in half. Yukino rushed into the cell, hugging Rogue tightly.

Sting created a smaller version of his white dragon's roar to slice the chains in half, then walked over to Rogue.

"You there buddy?" He asked quietly.

Rogue stared at him, his eyes seeming to focus. He opened his mouth to say something then closed it and looked away.

"Rogue... We're gonna get you out of here, don't worry." Sting told him. Rogue nodded, eyes begining to slip out of focus again. Sting's expression changed to fury.

"They're going to pay for what they've done for you." He promised, tone dark.

Gajeel was fighting Minerva. Much to his distaste, they were sort of evenly matched. She seemed to think so too, as she broke away, cancelling her territory magic. She pulled out a gun, glowing with shadow magic.

"Hah! You may be strong, but I have a part of the magic we stole from your friend. You'll be destroyed by the thing you were trying to save!" She laughed insanely.

Gajeel raised and eyebrow and did nothing and crossed his arms as the shot raced towards him. He opened his mouth at the last second and...

Minerva stared in shock as Gajeel ate at the blast.

"Gihihihi, you're not very bright, are you? Iron Shadow Dragon Mode." Gajeel cackled.

"W-What?" Minerva had paled. Just then Sting, Yukino and Lisanna burst round the corner. Gajeel's eyes widened as he spotted Rogue.

"Did you do that to him?" Gajeel snarled. Minerva had recovered from her shock and had a smirk on her face.

"Me? No, not really. He did it to himself." She laughed. "Though Ryos did seem a little down in the dumps. Well, not at first. See, he was rather excited as he seemed to remember something. He tried to ask me a question, but I think he got the message when I knocked him out and he woke up in a cell. So, a tiny bit of it could've been me." She said innocently.

"Sick bi***." Gajeel spat.

"My, my, you're acting like I've done something wrong." Minerva smiled at them. "Besides, you can't act like you actually care for Ryos." She sneered.

For the first time since they had found him, Rogue reacted. He leapt away from Sting, staggering slightly.

"Shut... Up..." He hissed, his voice was hoarse, but it was enough to silence all of them. Minerva blinked, expression turning unreadable as Rogue started radiating shadows. One of his eyes suddenly started glowing and he disappeared into the shadows. Moving with impossible speed, especially considering his condition, he sprung from the shadows, striking Minerva with unnatural strength, as they'd been draining his magic.

She gasped, looking down to see the damage he had done. The wound looked pretty bad, but it clearly wasn't fatal. Her lips moved but she fell backwards before she could utter a single word. Gajeel looked like he was sorely tempted to kick her, but noticed Yukino glaring at him.

Rogue swayed in his place, before his eyes rolled back into his head, but luckily, Sting was there to catch him.

"Something ain't right with the kid." Gajeel grunted.

"Yeah, I think we've noticed." Lisanna huffed.

"Can we just try to get along until we get Rogue out of here?" Yukino pleaded. They turned to look at Rogue, but Sting was already carrying him away.


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N Right, I might not be able to do daily updates at the moment, but you should get about three a week. Just to mention quickly, that Carla will come into the story, just not yet. As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail.**

"Oh no! What's wrong with Rogue?" Wendy cried once they had found her.

"Don't know." Sting told her bluntly. "They took his magic and something to do with the memory charm. Heal him, please." For a fleeting second, Wendy could see how vunerable Sting really was. Wordlessly, he set his best friend down on the floor.

Wendy hurried over to the shadow dragon slayer and started using her healing magic. She looked up, startled when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Let me help." Sherria offered. Wendy smiled shyly and edged over so Sherria could join her. For a while they sat in silence, just healing the wounds of the shadow dragon slayer and helping him restore his magic energy.

"I'm sorry, this is going to sound so weird, but do I know you from somewhere?" Wendy asked softly.

"I think you do." Sherria admitted. "I... I was in the same village as you. We were best friends, and we used to play together every day. With your cat, but she disappeared after the dragon attacked. I don't mind if you don't remember, I... I'm just so glad you're alive." She sniffed, pausing to wipe away a tear.

"I... I want to remember, I really do... It's just with everything going on, my mind is so stressed that I can feel the charm breaking but my healing magic is stopping it... I can't cancel the magic, but hopefully when this is all over... I'd like to be friends again." Wendy had also started crying.

"I can wait... I'd love to be friends again..." Sherria smiled through her tears.

"Hey!" Laxus yelled at them. "They're calling for reinforcements, we have to retreat while we still can." He told them. He looked furious, so he'd been filled in on what happened to Rogue. Without missing a beat, he walked over to them and scooped up Rogue.

"Let's go."

* * *

The mages who had gone to Raven Tail didn't stop once in their retreat and had sprinted the whole way back to the temporary base. Laxus had contacted Mira before hand and she had started preparing medical equipment and had made a lot of food, some for the hungry mages after their long battle and mostly for Rogue, so they could help with how frail he now looked.

The team that had gone to Tartaros had a slightly larger distance to cover, so they'd be back at a later time. Not to mention that they were on the run from the rune knights and had to either knock them out or ditch them. Seeing as Tartaros had stooped low enough to make their guild's base on someone else's property, the magic council wasn't very happy. Not to mention that the rich old man who owned far too much land for his own good had put a very large bounty on their heads.

Jura had called Mira to let them know what was going on, and asked her to send Makarov to clear things up, and she had seen something rather amusing in the back ground.

"Who's turn is it to deal with them again?" A woman she didn't recognise had yelled.

"Who cares?" Natsu had been grinning despite his odd appearance, with the black markings and all. "We get to beat 'em up either way!"

"Because, Flame-brain," Gray snapped. "You'd get more points in the game and there's no way you're beating me."

"Actually," Lucy butted in, smirking. "Mavis and I already dealt with them."

"So, that puts our team in the lead!" Mavis cheered.

"Dream on." Erza smiled at them. "You won't stay in the lead for long!"

Mira had burst out laughing at the fact they were treating the magic council as a massive game. Makarov however, looked like he was about to cry.

Cobra had been anxious to see how his fellow dragon slayer was doing and had been horrified to see the markings. He had furiously questioned what had happened, but as the group had been on the run, the lacrima call had closed off before he could be answered properly.

Needless to say Cobra hadn't been in the best of moods since then. He was worried sick about Rogue and Natsu. Those black markings hadn't seemed like anything good, and Natsu had been known to smile through his pain before, so the lacrima didn't mean anything. Then there was the lack of news from the group that had gone to Raven Tail. The silence unnerved him, anything could be happening.

* * *

"They're here!" Mira cried. Kinanna rushed to help her lay out the food. Cobra decided to help them, as they no longer had Levy to help them, as she was the one Makarov had sent to go and clear up the whole Tartaros issue.

The doors burst open and a large group of people trampled their way into their base.

"Guys, do you have any food, we need to get Rogue to eat!" Elfman bellowed. After that, it was chaos. Mira was rushing around, serving food and tying bandages. Kinanna was helping her the best that she could, but at that moment, Levy had rung from the magic council and needed to update the guild on what was going on.

"Holy- What the hell happened to him?" Cobra asked, staring at Rogue. Wendy and Sherria were standing near him, anxiously checking. Gajeel quickly filled him in on what had happened. Cobra's heart sank and he stopped to listen.

 _"Don't speak Rogue, you'll end up driving them away, like you did with Minerva."_

 _"Shut up... Go away."_

 _"Weak. You can't look them in the eye. What they must think of you..."_

 _"I know... They already had to go against the dark guild because I was weak..."_

 _"Hmph, soon they won't want you!"_

 _"Be quiet, they won't..."_

 _"But they will... And you know it."_

 _"Go... Go away."_

It wasn't until Wendy tugged at his sleeve that Cobra realised he was staring at Rogue. It took him even longer to realise that Rogue was staring back, one eye showing fear and misery, the other one filled with hate.

 _"He can hear us!"_

"Two voices? What?" Cobra muttered.

 _"Nevermind, this one isn't very intelligent... I don't know why I was worried."_

 _"Cobra... Get away from here, he'll-"_

"You know I'm really not scared of whoever that guy is." Cobra deadpanned. "Last I checked, you were messed up and... Who even is he?" He asked, completely ignoring the strange looks he was getting.

"Oh, wait. Cobra can hear what's going on in Rogue's mind!" Wendy exclaimed.

"No way! I forgot he could do that." Sting exclaimed. Cobra's eye twitched. It was bad enough that he had to put up with hearing literally everything, but to have people forget... That was just plain insulting.

 _"I am nothing but a shadow... The shadow of Rogue."_

 _"Go away."_

Cobra winced. "Poor Rogue. I can't believe that he had to put up with you the entire time."

 _"Erm, in case you hadn't noticed, he didn't put up with me, and now he's depressed."_

 _"Go away."_

"This... Is going to take some more effort than I thought." Cobra admitted. Wendy tugged on his sleeve.

"What?" He asked, blinking as he realised that everyone was staring at him.

"Well... What did you find out?" Laxus asked him, narrowing his eyes like Cobra was being deliberately stupid.

"So, Rogue is half possesed by an evil shadow and is now too depressed to eat?" One of the trimen asked.

"Yes." Cobra sighed, mentally counting to ten to controll his anger. They could've at least listened to him.

"First thing's first, we need to get some food in him." Laxus commanded.

"Let me handle that." Sting offered quietly. The group took one look at his face and decided it would be best to leave him to it.

Rogue stared numbly at Sting. The shadow was hissing in his ear. He was still shocked that Cobra could hear his inner struggle. He was terrified by the knowledge, that someone could read him so well, what else could he know?

He was jolted out of his thoughts by Sting shoving food in front of him. He blinked, not saying anything and ignoring the dish of food.

"Eat." Sting ordered him. Rogue looked away.

"Don't give up so easily." Sting's voice was harsh. "Don't let this beat you. Eat."

Slowly, Rogue reached for a fork. For the first time in days, he began to eat.


	35. Chapter 35

Lisanna stared at Rogue, trying to read the emotions in his eyes. One was filled with hatred and sickening amusement. The other, she suspected showed his actual emotions, and it was clouded with fear and self loathing. She knew those emotions only too well. Slowly, she pondered his situation. An idea came to her like a flash of lightning, and she raced off, ignoring Elfman's yell. She had it. She knew how to help Rogue.

* * *

The Tartaros team were more than pleased to hear that the magic council finally realised the situation and stopped sending soldiers after them. They were even happier to hear they had ended up fairly close to the temporary base of Fairy Tail, so there wan't much walking involved in going home. Erza and Kagura ended up winning the game by miles, with the Dragneel brothers and Gray and Juvia had tied for second. Mavis and Lucy had come third, much to Jura's amusement. Mavis had sulked for an entire three minutes over their loss.

"Yay! I can see the town!" Milianna cheered.

"Can you? Good." Kagura nodded.

"Let us go and return back triumphant." Jura told them. He rolled his eyes as the entire group took this as a signal to charge, and took of screaming.

* * *

Suprisingly, Mavis was the one who kicked the doors open.

"We're back!" She chirped.

"Did it work? How are they?" Makarov asked.

"We are right here, you know." Natsu told him.

"What the hell are those markings?" Makarov exploded.

"Zeref can explain." Natsu said lazily.

"Please no." The former dark mage begged.

"Relax, I'll help." Mavis giggled.

"Where's Rogue?" Natsu asked immdediately.

"With Sting. The other dragon slayers are with them, in a corner of the guild." Mira told them, carring over much needed food and drinks to the team that had just returned. Natsu nodded and shot off, Lucy following.

"Guys, is Rogue okay?" Natsu asked, walking over to the rest of the dragon slayers.

"Sort of. He isn't near death, but he seems to have a shadow half possessing him." Cobra explained. "On the bright side, he's eating now."

"Now? What do you mean?" Lucy asked.

"He seemed to have gone into a depression and stopped eating." Wendy informed them sadly.

"But what about you?" Laxus asked, loooking up at Natsu.

"Holy- what's going on with those markings?" Laxus bellowed. Natsu covered his ears and glared at the lightning dragon slayer.

"Sorry, but what the hell is up with those?" Laxus asked again, but quieter this time.

"It's a long story, but thanks to Lucy," Natsu patted her on the head. "They're not painful anymore. In fact, they gave me a power up." He laughed.

"Anymore?" Sting raised an eyebrow.

"Care to elaborate?" Cobra asked.

"Erm... Zeref isn't here to explain, darn it." Natsu muttered. "You guys ever heard of demon particles?"

"No." Wendy cut in. "We haven't."

"Well, my brother created these particles that grant the user a new power, that's different from magic, and it's really strong." Natsu began.

"Go on, I can feel the catch coming." Laxus grunted. Cobra's eyes narrowed. He couldn't hear Natsu's or Erza's thoughts. It was definately something to do with those markings.

"They're powered off negative emotions, like fear or betrayal." Natsu told them grimly. "And while Mard Geer was controlling us, we were trapped in our deepest fears. But Mavis decided that a strong positive emotion would set us free. So she sent someone in after us, and they cancelled out the curse and set us free." He said happily.

"What was the positive emotion?" Wendy asked curiously.

"Sorry, can't tell you," Natsu laughed. "Luce has to be the first to know."

"What?" Lucy, Laxus, Cobra and Sting asked at the same time.

"Well," Natsu looked like he had been backed into a corner. "I... Um, I really can't say."

"C'mon Natsu, tell me." Lucy begged.

"Later." He told her firmly.

"Cobra, can you hear what it is?" Sting rounded on him.

"Nope. Don't even ask." Cobra shrugged.

* * *

"So," Makarov sighed. "Is there any way to get rid of the markings?"

"Yes," Zeref began slowly, "but it involves a lot of training, and they have to learn to master their new powers."

Makarov went pale. "Is there going to be property damage."

The answer was made clear enough as Zeref slowly edged away from the Master. The former dark mage ducked behind a chair and covered his ears, but it didn't really drown out Makarov's screaming.

Mika, who had been lead to the Master by Gray, paused.

"Is this a bad time?" She asked uncertainly.

"No. He does this a lot." Gray reassured her. "Something to do with property damage."

"Oh. So, can I talk to him now?" She asked, looking amused.

"I'm fine." Makarov said weakly.

"Oi, Gramps, someone wants to talk to you." Gray called.

"Sure, go ahead." He shrugged looking at Mika.

"What's your name, my dear?" He asked her kindly.

"I'd like to join the guild." She told him, completely ignoring his question.

"Sure, what magic do you use, and what's you name?" He asked again.

"Oh, I'm an Ice Devil slayer, and my name is Mika Fullbuster."

Makarov nearly fell out of his chair. "Fullbuster... So you're not dead. Nice to meet you! Let me fetch the stamp." He sprinted towards the bar.

"Huh. He seems nice." She murmured.

"Yep, he's super nice, just... Just don't get in one of his punishment games. Ever." Gray shuddered.

"What do you mean, punishment games?" Mika asked, oblivious to the fear and shudders she caused by speaking the dreaded words too loudly.

"He doesn't mean anything." Makarov said brightly, returning with the stamp. "What coulour and where?"

"Hand. Black." She smiled at him.

"Sure thing, welcome to the guild!" Makarov cheered.

"So, this is what a light guild like, huh? I can't believe I didn't join one sooner." She laughed.

* * *

"You know," A figure sighed. "If you're sure about what you saw, you could've at least remembered what the guild mark looked like."

Her ear twitched in annoyance. "I told you before," she huffed. "It's not that easy and you know it."

"Well, the closest guild is Fairy Tail. But their guild hall is still destroyed."

"Are you looking for Fairy Tail?" An eager voice from behind them asked. Both the figures who were talking before jumped. They hadn't even noticed the guy sneaking up on them.

"Yes." The first figure nodded, ignoring the glare it earned.

"So COOL! I can help, see they had to move to a temporary base since their old guild hall was destroyed." The man explained excitedly.

"So, where are they now?" The first figure spoke again.

"Oh, they're in the next town from here. Isn't it cool?" He was practically jumping up and down.

"And you know this how?" The second figure asked scathingly.

"I follow them around everywhere since they're so COOL! They just haven't noticed me this time." He beamed.

"Right. If it does turn out that he's telling the truth, we're never telling anyone we took directions from a fangirl stalker." The first one nodded quickly.

"Let's just get out of here."


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N Sorry if it's slightly later than usual, but I've been pretty busy for the last couple of days. This is mostly a filler, but only one, so there's going to be a lot of stuff happening soon. As usual, hope you enjoy, and I don't own Fairy Tail.**

"So, you're going to train with Zeref and Erza?" Lucy asked. After a long day of catching up with people and writing reports, she was finally alone with Natsu. It was surprising that Happy wasn't with them, but the blue cat had been eating a fish when they'd decided to take a walk. Remembering what Aquarius had said, she needed to talk to him.

"Yeah, so we can get rid of these markings. Apparently it's going to be training from hell." Natsu laughed. "We can handle it."

"I'm sure you will." Lucy smiled. He was still a lovable idiot, despite everything that had happened to him.

"Say, Luce are you okay? You're being extra weird." He asked, checking her temperature.

"Hey! Moron!" She snapped. "I'm fine." She added softly.

"You sure?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah." She couldn't find the words to start what she wanted to say, and it was driving her crazy.

"Say, Lucy... Um, did you want to know what the... Emotion was?" Natsu asked her, hiding his face with his scarf.

"Yes, actually." Now that she was reminded of it, she was really curious. Natsu mumbled something really quickly, and Lucy had no chance of hearing it.

"What? I didn't even get a letter of that." Lucy huffed. "Say it slower."

"It... It was love." Natsu admitted, leaving Lucy speechless.

"I-I... Natsu?" Lucy asked, as the dragon slayer's face had gone rather red. Okay, besides the fact that his face matched his fire, the dragon slayer was acting rather oddly. He was staring at the floor and shuffling uneasily.

"Natsu, did you know there was something I needed to tell you?" Lucy asked.

"What was it?" He asked, expression unreadable.

"I... Uh..." She suddenly felt very awkward.

Well, she was supposed to be a writer and be good with words, but they failed her. There was only one thing left to do, physical action. Well, Natsu got the messge quickly enough, and learned why humans liked kissing so much.

* * *

"What's wrong, Cana?" Mavis asked softly, sliding into the seat next to Fairy Tail's best drinker.

"Nothing." The card mage couldn't meet her eyes.

"Go on, you can tell me." Mavis urged.

"No." Cana huffed.

"I'm here to listen, you know. I might even be able to help." Mavis told her.

"Whatever. I might as well tell you, it won't matter once I leave the guild anyway." Cana muttered.

"You're planning on leaving?" Mavis gasped.

"Yes. No. I don't know." Cana groaned. "Hear me out."

So Mavis listened. She felt her heart go out to the poor mage.

"Say, Cana, how would you feel about a little training with me?" Mavis asked sweetly.

"Say what?" Cana blinked.

"Well, I wouldn't be opposed to helping you become S Class, after what I just heard, and I have a couple of useful spells you could learn." Mavis offered happily. Cana beamed like she'd just uncovered a barrel of beer with her name on it.

* * *

"Last warning." Zeref told them with a small smile. "This is going to be training from hell."

"Good, bring it on." Natsu smirked.

"I second that." Erza looked smug if anything.

"Well," Zeref shrugged. "This is going to be your own fault, isn't it."

"I'm not scared." Natsu boasted.

"You're not going to want your girlfriend watching this." Zeref added slyly.

Natsu blushed. "Hey Luce. Do you want to watch?" He asked cheerfully enough.

"Don't worry, I'm going to get my own training done." She smirked, holding up her keys.

"Cool, good luck." Natsu grinned.

* * *

"You want to _what_?" Gray asked disbelievingly.

"I want to teach you devil slaying magic." Mika smiled. "Won't it be cool?"

"Sure, I guess, but it just..." Gray shifted uneasily.

"Just what?" Mika asked sharply.

"It just... It makes it seem like you're leaving soon." Gray admitted.

Mika suprised him by ruffling his hair. "I'm not going anywhere. I just think it would be super cool. It could be like a mother and son thing, eh?" She grinned.

Gray found himself smiling. "Seems cool. Why the heck not?"

Mika high fived him. "One more thing." She said suddenly.

"Sure, what is it?" Gray asked.

"When are you going to admit to Juvia that you _liiiiiiiiike_ her?"

* * *

"Say, Master?" Mira asked as she poured Makarov a large brandy.

"Yes Mira? What is it?" Makarov asked. He was in a strangely good mood, as nothing had been destroyed today.

"Well, I was just wondering what you were going do to for this year's S Class exam." She laughed.

"Well, there are so many new powerful mages and they all have the heart needed. I'm going to have to increase the number of people I'll invite and pass." He groaned, already thinking of the planning.

"Hm, that seems like a good idea. Oh yeah, there was something else I needed to tell you... Let me see, what was it... Jet, Droy, Levy and Gajeel destroyed half a village. No, that wasn't it... Erm, Elfman destroyed a pet shop, wait, that isn't it either. Yay! I just remembered what it was. Gray tore apart the guild hall, though I'm not sure why. I just thought you should know... Master? Master, are you okay?" Mira asked worridly.

"I... I... WHY AM I THE GUILDMASTER?" Makarov wailed.

"Can we talk to Makarov?" Jellal asked. All of the members of his guild were behind him, including the new addition of Angel, who wore a cloak to hide her identity.

"Sure, though he's a bit upset at the moment. Ultear, do you think that you could use your magic to restore part of the guild again, if you don't mind?" Mira asked, laughing sheepishly.

"Sure." Ultear shrugged. It wasn't anything she hadn't done before.

"Thank you very much." Mira smiled. She really wished that Jellal's guild was a part of Fairy Tail, they all seemed to fit in, but they always talked about having to destroy darkness the hard way, and made themselves suffer.

Jellal knocked on the door. There was a muffled sob before Makarov called for them to enter. Makarov was sitting at his desk with a box of tissues, staring at the paperwork that towered above him.

"Oh, hey, what's up?" Makarov asked without looking at them, staring gloomily at the papers in front of him.

The members of his guild stared uncertainly at him and Jellal took the silent prompt to talk.

"We, uh... We want to join your guild." Jellal said nervously.

"What?" Makarov finally looked up at them. "Why the sudden change of heart?"

"Well, with what happened at Tartaros and all of us realised that we really care for your guild and, um... Yeah." Jellal said awkwardly, inwardly cursing the lack of help from his guildmates.

"I see. That's all well and good except for two of you. See, Zeref and Angel. You were both known members of dark guilds."

"Yes, and we've prepared for that." Zeref nodded. "We can easily use transformation magic to create fake identities. Also, no one other than Tartaros has seen my real face, and none of them are exactly in any condition to talk, are they?"

Zeref was right. Mard Geer was in hospital and the rest of Tartaros was either on the run, in jail or dead. Angel nodded.

"Well in that case," The Master beamed. "Welcome to the guild!"

* * *

"Hey Rogue!" Lisanna said brightly. The shadow dragon slayer sat alone in a corner in the guild. He seemed to like the corners and the silece they contained. She held the paw of the creature tightly, as he seemed scared.

Rogue looked at her but didn't say anything. He hadn't spoken at all, as far as she knew.

"Well," She didn't allow her uncertainty to show. "I brought you a friend. This is Frosch." She gestured to the green Exceed clad in his pink frog onsie.

"Hi!" Frosch said, smiling at the dragon slayer.

Lisanna frowned when the shadow dragon slayer didn't say anything. Sighing, she sat down next to him.

"Look, from what I've heard from Cobra, it seems like you don't trust yourself to get close to anyone because of this shadow. Well, Rogue, you can't let it get to you like that." She exclaimed.

He stared at her dully.

"If you give up now, you're letting it win. If you give up now, you're proving it right. So, Rogue. Prove it wrong. Take care of Frosch. Take down your walls, if just for one small cat." She told him defiantly. Something like shock flickered in his eyes.

"Okay." He whispered. "I'll try."


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N Here's the next chapter! Hope you enjoy, and as usual, I don't own Fairy Tail :)**

Much to everyone's suprise, Rogue had reacted very well to taking care of Frosch. As weeks went by, he would start to speak more, as the small Exeed seemed to encourage him every time the shadow would mock the shadow dragon slayer.

"Rogue," Frosch tugged on his sleeve, making the dragon slayer look at him. "Can I try some of what you're drinking, please?" He begged.

Rogue looked uncomfortably at his drink. After days of bugging him, Sting had finally convinced him to try some beer, needless to say Rogue wasn't a very big fan of the drink. At all.

"Nah, you wouldn't want this." Rogue told the Exeed quickly, ignoring Sting's laughs. Much to everyone's relief, after two long months of recovering, Rogue was almost back to normal, aside from having the occasional flashback, but Sting and Yukino were always there to help.

On another bright note, Wendy had recovered all of her memories. After Rogue had started showing signs of recovery, the healing magic inside her stopped restoring the charm and she had collapsed. To add on to all the drama, at that time, two Exeeds had entered the guild, claiming to have known some of the dragon slayers when they were children. Thankfully Sherria recognised one of them, and the Exeed known as Carla joined Sherria in waiting by Wendy's side. Unfortunately, Wendy was greeted by a spitting headache the second she woke up and saw Carla.

After the worrying three minutes that it took for Wendy to recover, she happily announced that she remembered everything and the three shared a tearful reunion.

* * *

"Do you have to go back to Lamia Scale?" Wendy sniffed, scrubbing her eyes furiously.

"Yeah, I can't just leave my guild. I'll call you a lot on the lacrima. I promise." Sherria cried, hugging Wendy.

"Wendy!"

"Sherria!"

The both hugged each other tightly, unwilling to let go. Sadly, it had to happen.

"I'l miss you, Sherria." Wendy said quietly.

"Same. I'm sorry I've got to go." The pink haired girl sighed. "I will call a lot though. Promise!" She added brightly. Wendy managed to smile through her tears.

"I'll hold you to it."

"Good." Sherria grinned. "See you around Wendy."

Just like that, Sherria was gone, leaving Wendy to walk numbly back inside the guild hall. Cobra, Laxus, Sting, Rogue, Gajeel and Carla were waiting for her.

"Hey kid, don't worry." Cobra ruffled her hair. "You've still got us, and even though Natsu isn't here right now, he's watching out for you too." He smiled. Wendy nodded. Carla flew over.

"Are you alright child?" She asked.

"Carla! Wendy! Hey, how are you?" Happy burst into the guild.

"Good, thank you Happy." Wendy smiled. "How are you?" She asked politely.

"I'm good! Carla, would you like a fish?" Happy asked, offering her a large fish.

"No thank you." Carla said stiffly, watching through narrowed eyes as Happy visably deflated.

"Aw, don't be so mean, Carla." Wendy scolded gently.

"Oh yeah!" Happy brightened. "I almost forgot, but Natsu, Erza and um... Spriggan are coming back from their training today!" He yelled, flying in happy circles.

"Really? That's great. I can't wait to see him again!" Wendy squealed.

"Who is this Natsu you speak of?" Carla asked. Happy looked delighted that Carla was talking to him.

"Natsu is my best friend and a really strong dragon slayer." Happy boasted.

"Is that so." Carla didn't sound convinced. Just then, Lucy skipped into the guild, a letter clutched to her chest. Natsu had been writing to her, well, as his writing skills weren't that good and he didn't know many words, he told Zeref what to write and the former dark mage had written out the letters neatly.

"He's coming back today!" Lucy announced to the guild. Everyone broke out into cheers, and Jellal relaxed, sagging into his chair. Ultear smirked as she saw this and whispered something in his ear. Jellal sat bolt upright, blushing furiously.

Gray and Mika had arrived a couple of days ago, and Gray now had the same markings as his mother, and that had clued the guild into the fact that they now had similar magic. Juvia had been estatic at their return, beaming and crushing Gray into a hug... That he suprisingly returned.

Gajeel had ended up with most of his memory spell breaking. He had stared at Panther Lily for a full minute before finally being able to speak. Then the two had flung questions at each other rapid fire, and it somehow it ended up with the two of them fighting, Lily using his massive sword and Gajeel eventually going into dragon force. The battle seemed to answer some of their questions, and after their fight, one would never be seen without the other. So, those two at least had a happy ending, and a new begining.

* * *

"We're back!" Everyone started cheering as Natsu kicked the doors open.

"You're back!" Lucy cried, rushing forwards. The two met in a hug, and the weeks between them melted away.

"That moron. I told him not to run ahead." Erza cursed, storming through the doors.

"Erza!" Jellal brightened. Ultear hid her smirk and shoved the blued haired mage into the requip mage. It really was amusing watching the two blush and stutter. Cobra rolled his eyes and turned to Kinana.

"Idiots, the lot of them." He scoffed.

"Don't be like that." Kinana scolded him.

"Well, it's true." He defended.

"So mean!" Kinana gasped.

"I actually feel inclined to agree with you, Cobra." Zeref said pleasantly from beside him, making both dragon slayer and barmaid jump.

"What? Didn't hear me come in? My, you're losing your touch." Zeref laughed.

"Zeeeeeeeeeref!" Mavis squealed, flinging herself at the former dark mage.

"Gah! Mavis, you scared me." He mumbled into her hair.

"Hypocrite." Cobra scowled, making Kinana giggle.

"Alright brats, listen up!" Makarov bellowed. Everyone paused, looking guilty already. What had they broken now?

"I have some good news and bad news." He told them, making them shiver.

"The bad news is, that Jason from Sorcerer Weekly has been stalking us and we have been unable to get rid of him. So, basically, we need to teach him the meaning of privacy. Again." Makarov groaned. The entire guild looked furious.

"What's the good news?" Mavis asked from her perch on Zeref's lap.

"Well, I'm finally out of debt." Makarov beamed.

"What?"

"Really?"

"How the hell did he manage that?"

"He must've stolen money."

"Yeah, that has to be it."

"What? Master wouldn't!"

"Really? Did you see the state he was in after the Tartaros damage bill?"

"I herad that it had five zeros on it."

"Hah, you heard wrong, it was ten!"

"That's nothing to be proud of, you know."

"SHUT IT YOU BRATS! I DID NOT STEAL MONEY." Makarov thundered.

"Then how the hell did you do it?" Laxus yelled back.

"Oh, well..." Makarov scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Okay, let's be honest here, he totally stole money."

"You know... I'm starting to think that he did."

"Surely Master wouldn't sink that low."

"But he did have a lot of issues involving money."

"Oi! I'm right here you know." Makarov was getting really annoyed.

"So, he won't own up that he robbed a bank."

"Eh, are you _suprised_?"

"Robbing a bank, I never thought he'd stoop so low..."

"Robbing? You heard wrong, I heard that he flattened it."

"No way..."

"Really?"

"Your faith is touching." Makarov muttered sarcastically. "And no, I did not rob, flatten or bow up a bank. I sold all my magazines. That's all you need to know." He yelled. The guild was silent for a second, before everyone, even Levy burst into frantic laughter.

"You know," Mira managed through her giggles. "It was about time you got rid of them."

"I don't even want to know what was in those magazines." Laxus muttered finally, turning away.

"Why did I even think of a nice suprise for you awful brats? THERE WAS MORE TO THE GOOD NEWS YOU MORONS!" Makarov practically screamed.

"There was?" Everyone gasped.

"Alright... I'm saying this once and only once. I've arranged for the entire guild to have a week at the beach." He grinned.

"Yay!"

"You're the best, Master."

"A whole week, awesome!"

"Wow, that was unexpected."

"I have a question." Everyone turned to look at Natsu, who shrugged helplessly. "What's a beach?"


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N Here's the next chapter :D As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail, hope you all enjoy!**

"Why is everyone so scared of sharks?" Natsu asked cluelessly. Wendy had come up with a healing spell, so the dragon slayers didn't have to suffer through their terrible motion sickness. Needless to say, the mages had been bombarded by endless questions the entire train journey there.

"Well, they attack people in the water, and they're really hard to spot..." Lucy shivered, clinging onto Natsu's arm.

"They sound cool." Natsu smirked, before he noticed Lucy had gone really pale. "Hey Luce, what's the matter?" He asked.

"T-There aren't going to be a-any sharks where we're going, r-right?" She asked timidly.

"Well..." Makarov looked guilty. "How do you think I managed to get us the place for so cheap?"

"You suck!" She wailed.

"Don't worry about the sharks," Natsu grinned at her. "They're not gonna be a problem."

"How can you say that?" She sniffed. She was probably over reacting, but she wasn't called a drama queen (by Happy) for nothing.

"Eh, I'll deal with them." He looked like he suddenly had an idea. "Shark hunting!"

"Sounds like fun." Gajeel smirked. He had just been comforting Levy, with Jet and Droy arguing in the background.

"B-But what if the sharks hurt you?" Poor Levy sounded terrified.

"Gihihi, that won't happen, Shrimp." Gajeel laughed and ruffled her hair.

"Shark hunting? It sounds fun, I want to do it too!" Mavis squealed.

"Sure, it'll be awesome!" Natsu grinned.

"Looks like I'll have to come along too." Zeref sighed. "I can't trust Natsu to be out of my sight, his talent for getting into trouble is that great."

"That's insulting."

"I'm honestly suprised you know what the word 'insulting' means."

"That's also insulting."

"Yeah, Zeref, don't be so mean!"

"Sorry Mavis. It's brotherly love, I promise."

"Good." She huffed. Zeref finally looked suitably guilty.

"Hey Natsu." Lucy asked suddenly. "What was your training like?"

Shocking everyone, the dragon slayer turned pale and started shaking. Zeref was smirking. Erza seemed to have heard the word 'training' from the other end of the crowded train caridge and she also went pale.

"Say, are you actually going to go shark hunting?" Jellal asked uncertainly, raising an eyebrow. He was never sure if they were joking or not.

"In that case, I shall join them." Erza announced, seeming to have recovered from the mention of training.

"Not you too." Levy whispered, thankfully too quiet for Erza to hear. Wendy, however managed to hear and laughed.

"Woah, is that the sea?" Sting asked suddenly, face pressed to the glass. Quickly, everyone gathered around to look at the sparkling mass of water. Lucy throught that from here, it looked like a piece of glass, a beautiful mix of blues and greens. Happy always called her weird.

"It's so loud." Cobra murmured.

"And big!" Natsu, Sting, Rogue, Wendy and Gajeel chourused.

"And blue." Laxus grunted.

* * *

"Alright brats. I've assigned you all a room, so that you won't tear down the place. You're in rooms of six, you hear, so listen up." He then told everyone their rooms in the most boring way possible. Natsu, Gray and Gajeel had to be knocked out because they were complaining. Loudly.

"Everyone got it?" Makarov snapped. He just wanted to get on the beach and relax with a nice, cold beer. He deserved it, didn't he?

"Right, go and unpack, then we'll head to the beach." He sighed, giving into the unblinking stares. There was a great cheer and all at once his brats rushed off, leaving him in the dust.

"Why did I even bother?" He groaned.

Makarov had forced the guild to walk normally to the beach, and to not abuse the poor single teleport mage. Nobody seemed to remember exactly when he joined, but it didn't matter, they weren't really bothered at this point.

"Woah!" Levy gasped as they stepped onto the beach. "The sea breeze feels so good!"

"I know, it's amazing!" Lucy sighed.

"CHARGE!" The entire shark hunting team cried, rushing into the ocean. There was a massive spashing sound, and the mages disappeared underwater.

"How do they even plan to breathe underwater?" Lucy wondered, as she realised the flaw in their plan.

"Oh that?" Cobra laughed. "You know all the diving lacrimas that Master brought, the ones with the special communication feature that lets them talk normally? Well, they raided the store for them and off they go."

Lucy sighed. It was really typical of them, so she really shouldn't be suprised anymore.

"Wait, you knew?" She screeched. Sadly, she recieved no response, as Cobra was too busy staring at Kinana in her swimsuit, not even bothering to hide his blush. It was around then that Lucy remembered that this was the first time the dragon slayers had been to the beach.

Quickly, she grabbed Levy and whispered in her ear. Her blue haired friend nodded and the two rushed off to find Wendy. The girl was hiding behind a tree, looking embarassed.

"I don't get this." She whimpered.

Carla hissed and waved her tail. "Neither do I." She complained.

"There you are, Wendy!" Levy said brightly, waving. The dragon slayer smiled.

"Hi Levy, hi Lucy!" She smiled, waving. She was still clinging to the tree.

"Are you okay, Wendy?" Lucy asked.

"Y-Yes, don't worry about me... I'm sorry!" She squeaked. Carla frowned.

"You don't need to apologize to them. You haven't done anything." The Exeed pointed out.

"I'm sorry!" She mumbled.

"Well, since this is your first time at the beach, we were wondering if you wanted to hang out with us?" Levy offered kindly.

Wendy's face lit up. "I'd love to!" She beamed.

Giggling, the four raced to the sea. Well, Carla flew. Still, Levy grabbed a beach ball and they started playing catch. Wendy soon found out why humans enjoyed join to the beach so much. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Rogue was checking the rockpools with Frosch, leaving Sting and Yukino to join in the world's biggest splashing contest between Jet, Droy, Cobra, Kinana, Cana, Laxus, Freed, Evergreen, Elfman, Mira, Lisanna, Bixlow and pretty much everyone else in the guild, but the people named seemed to be winning.

"I think we should avoid that." Lucy muttered, glancing at the growing battle.

"Yeah." The other three agreed. That fight looked brutal.

* * *

"Found one!" Natsu shouted. Thanks to the lacrimas, his voice travelled normally through the water. Unfortunately, that meant that the shark heard him, somehow, he couldn't tell how, the things didn't have ears. The thing looked at him, souless eyes peering at him through the gloom, before vanishing, as it seemed the beast could sense the magic in them. Or something far darker. While training with Zeref, the former dark mage had revealed more information about demon particles. He felt more pity for Erza. He'd always known that he could never be normal, not after the dragons, but this was probably new to her.

Still, she'd hidden her reaction to the news and hadn't spoken of the matter afterwards. Natsu had no choice but to believe that she was okay, or at least not seriously upset by the news. While he swam after the shark, Natsu thought about Lucy. Sure, he felt bad for not telling her, but this was supposed to be a happy time, and he couldn't bring himself to ruin it. Not for her, not for anyone.

"Salamader, get swimming!" Gajeel bellowed. Natsu jolted to reality and started swimming, determined to catch the shark, if just to annoy one of his many rivals. Zeref couldn't help but roll his eyes, before turning to Mavis.

"Want to move? All the sharks here are probably gone now." He offered her with a small smile, not that she could see it.

"Sure! I can't wait." She squealed, hugging his arm.

Erza watched the two swim off, then shrugged. "It looks like I shall hunt on my own." She muttered, swimming in the one direction that the others hadn't taken. With her new powers, however unwilling she was to accept them, nothing would hurt her. She just had to make it that she wasn't the one hurting others. That was a simple enough task. Besides, she had sharks to hunt.


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N I don't own Fairy Tail, hope you enjoy!**

Natsu and Gajeel had chased the shark deeper and deeper into the ocean. Natsu didn't really notice how much colder the water had become, well until he saw Gajeel shiver slightly. It had become much darker, but Natsu had managed to create a small flame to provide light. The shark seemed to have swam down a trench and it was finally cornered. Gajeel smirked and turned his arm into an iron dragon's club, sending it at the shark, which dodged with a swish of its tail, darting in close and sinking its teeth into his arm. Gajeel burst out laughing as the beast's teeth shattered, and it recoiled, only to swin straight into Natsu...

Gajeel noticed something was off about his friend's (no, he will not admit that twice) appearance. The fire dragon slayer looked downright demonic, smirking while an emotion that Gajeel never thought he'd see again flickered in his eyes. Let's just say that the shark didn't last long. Who knew fire could burn underwater.

Still, what Gajeel had seen was enough to convince him that Cobra was right, whatever had happened to Natsu affected the dragon slayer far more than he let on with the whole 'some emotion saved me' speech. Something was wrong. Badly wrong.

The other slayers were waiting for proof that something had changed before confronting him, but after the trip, as it was supposed to be a happy time. Yet down here, in the cold and gloom, the surface so far above them, it was like they were detached from the rest of the world, and the laughter from up above was disconected somehow. So, taking all this into mind Gajeel spoke.

"Sure brings you back, huh?" He asked, gesturing to the shark behind them.

"Yeah." Natsu grunted, the emotion that had disturbed Gajeel slipping from his face. It seemed that as stupid as the dragon slayer was, he too had caught onto what Gajeel had sensed about down there, and he didn't like where this conversation was going to go.

"Man, we stuck together like glue like then." He continued, for once forming words so he knew what he was going to say before he opened his mouth. Natsu's eyes widened, and bubbles trailed out of his diving mask, like he opened his mouth to say something, but stopped himself. This caused Gajeel's suspicions to know. If Salamander was showing even a shred of self control, then this was something to worry about.

"We used to tell each other everything, so nothing would get in the way..." He trailed off, wondering if Natsu would catch on.

"Yeah. We did." Was all he said, and his tone revealed nothing. Gajeel's stomach flipped. What the hell? Since when did Natsu know how to keep secrets?

"So what changed?" Gajeel challenged. "What are you keeping from us?"

Natsu's eyes widened, the only sign that he was surpised by the iron dragon slayer's words. "What changed?" He laughed. Gajeel was once again taken back by the bitterness in his tone. Natsu was normally so cheerful. Then again, if he did it so often, wouldn't it be easier to paint a smile on your face, to hide whatever you feel deep inside? Wouldn't it be like hiding a storm with sunlight, hiding in plain sight?

"I mean, we came to the human world, sure, but what? Why won't you share what happened?" Gajeel asked again, not revealing his panic. Just how well did he know Natsu now?

"We sure made a lot of promises back then." Natsu reminded him. Gajeel found himself nodding.

"Yeah. We did. Which one are you..." He trailed off. He wasn't liking the look in the fire dragon's eyes. It looked almost like betrayal.

"You know. All of us, after our first battle." His tone was flat, like the one he used for the Elders.

* * *

 _(Flashback)_

 _Seven children slumped to the floor underneath a tree. Moss had grown between the roots, and they rested their heads on it, not really caring about what their hair would look like the next day. The sun was setting, the sky was on fire, pinks, oranges and gold clashing together in a wild inferno._

 _"That was scary..." Sting spoke for all of them. They were all covered in blood, but not all of it was theirs. It was their first day on the battle field, and they had stumbled through it, throwing in attacks, barely dodging the blunt claws, the attacks that made the earth tremble with power. Yet they did it, they survived and here they were._

 _"Are you guys okay?" Laxus asked, fighting to stop his voice trembling._

 _"Yeah." They all chourued automatically._

 _"We're all liars." Rogue muttered._

 _"And murderers." Wendy whispered. Her words were quiet, like they slipped out, and they were filled with fear._

 _"Well," Natsu's voice had lost its cheer. "We can't change the past."_

 _"Or the future." Gajeel spat._

 _"But we can change something." Cobra sounded something that they never thought they'd feel again. Strong. Strong because he was speaking for all of them._

 _"How about we promise." Laxus asked. "Let's promise that we'll never leave each other behind. That we'll never let each other be lonely."_

 _"I promise." Every single one of them swore._

 _(Flashback over)_

* * *

"Something inside us died that day." Natsu spoke with the same sadness that Gajeel felt.

"But we put it back together. We made that promise, and something inside us healed." Gajeel finished.

"Tempered with steel and fire, becoming stronger through pain. That was our secret." Gajeel again wondered what was wrong with Natsu. When had things gone wrong?

"So what went wrong? Natsu, stop being a moron! Don't you trust us?" He blurted.

"Here's the thing. Can I?" He asked, words cutting into Gajeel like a kinfe.

"What? What's wrong with you? Can you... Don't be ridiculous!" Gajeel spluttered. He had lost any sense of control over the conversation.

"That promise... Promises mean a lot to me. Maybe that's why how a celestial mage never breaks a promise touches me, but that doesn't matter right now." He sighed, like what he was going to say was hurting him.

"And? We never broke that promise." Gajeel felt like he was missing something. Then he was going to remember and leave him completely shocked.

"Fine. Since you don't seem to get it, I'll tell you." Something was definately wrong. This wasn't Natsu. It couldn't be. "Those markings. While they were being created, I was trapped into my mind, living my greatest fears. The worst came first. Nothing afterwards quite compared, though a few came close."

Gajeel's mind was numb and racing at the same time. What? His greatest fears? He couldn't connect the dots.

"And what I saw first was all of you. The dragon slayers. Leaving me. Alone. On that battle field, and you were all just walking away." He spat.

"But... We'd never do that." Gajeel shouted. That was a fear. It wasn't real, so why was he acting like this?

"Something inside of me thought so. Even though I was terrified and betrayed, something held onto that promise. But later, Lucy came in after me, pulled me out." He took a deep breath. "And Mard Geer, someone who had gone through the same process as me, Zeref, Erza, but used it for evil tried to stop us. We were so close to getting out, then he told me something. Not a single one of you, not a single dragon slayer, none of you who had made the promise came. You know what? Something inside me died again."

Gajeel couldn't form words. Was that... Was that what was going on? How could they have been so careless?

"Look," Natsu's tone was just a little bit softer. "I get that Rogue was in trouble too and all, and that we already had some powerful mages going after us. But... But couldn't one of you, just one of you come after me?" He asked. Gajeel stared, taken completely off guard. In all his life, he had never once heard Natsu sound so sad.

They had broken him, so it would be up to them to fix him, no matter how long it took. Now he just needed to tell the others. Then they could work towards repairing the damage they had done.

* * *

Zeref bit his lip. He could feel the slight release of demon particles in the water, but it was so faint that only someone who had been affected by them could feel it. He couldn't help but admire the other two. They had gone through the exact same thing as him, and they still managed to act normal, able to smile and pretend to brush it off. Yet in a way, it was almost as bad as what happened to Rogue. They would feel fear, like they had never known before. But he already knew that they'd find an anchor and that everything would be alright again, eventually. After all, nothing could remain dark forever, the light would eventually touch it.

He smiled as he looked at Mavis. She was his light. She stopped the shadows, and she'd made everything okay. Closing his eyes, he could see it as clearly as though it happened yesterday...

 **A/N Yay! You get Zeref's and Mavis' backstory next time! Looking forward to it?**


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N Just a heads up, pretty much this entire chapter is going to be a flashback, where Zeref and Mavis met and you'll learn a bit more about demon particles. As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail! Hope you enjoy :)**

Zeref looked at the clock on his desk, then back at his book. It was old, the pages were thin and yellowing, and the words were handwritten, black spidery letters scrawled across the page. It was getting late, and the lacrima he was using for light was flickering. Yet he couldn't put the book down, not yet, as he was so close. Whoever had written this mentioned something about incredible power. He needed to know, he _needed_ that power. He had spent months in this pathetic guild so he could find this book, and he wanted to leave as soon as possible; he wasn't getting any stonger here.

Zeref jumped slightly as he heard a noise, but he relaxed when he realised that it was only Happy snoring. He frowned. The Exceed had been leaving more and more often, and he had argued with Zeref, saying what he was doing was wrong. How could he possibly be wrong? It was all for Natsu. He would become strong enough to kill all the dragons who dared keep him from his brother. He had to. Natsu was so innocent, so happy. He didn't deserve whatever was happening to him. Zeref would do anything for his brother. So, if Happy wanted to give up on Natsu, then so be it. Zeref would never, ever give up, he would never let go.

So, he turned the next page in the book and his eyes widened. This theory... Demon particles and curses. The power would be unbelievable. If he could get that strong, he could kill dragons. He would be able to see Natsu again. He ended up not sleeping that night. He had grabbed book after book, eyes skimming the pages frantically. If he wanted to do this, he'd need a guild with a better research facility. This place wouldn't do. They'd have to move again, but he'd heard of a new guild, Tartaros. They had enough money for expensive labs, and they were recruiting at the moment. Their guild was still fairly new, so he'd be able to get in with no trouble. All the while he was planning this, it never once occured to him that there would be consequences.

* * *

"No." Happy said flatly, staring at him.

"So you won't come to Tartaros with me." Zeref sighed. He'd suspected that this would happen sooner or later. It didn't prepare him for the pain inside his heart. He never thought of it like he would be losing his only remaining friend.

"Zeref, this is wrong. You're hurting people. You're hurting yourself." The Exceed sounded sad, pleading almost.

"I'm not hurt." Zeref denied.

"Yes you are. You're hurting every time you hurt someone else. Stop this, please." Happy pleaded, eyes brimming with tears.

"I'm not hurt. At all." Zeref repeated, letting some venom seep into his tone.

"You are. You just can't see it." The cat insisted. "I'm going to join a legal guild. Fairy Tail. Come with me. You could have friends, you could become so much stronger." He offered hopefully.

"Happy, legal guilds are _weak_." Zeref groaned. "I'm getting so much stronger like this. Why can't you see it?"

"What you're doing is wrong. You're causing so much pain, making so many people cry so many tears. Stop, please. Natsu wouldn't have wanted this." Happy begged.

"Natsu... How dare you speak his name, you've given up on him. I will become strong enough to get him back, I will not fail him." Zeref vowed, glaring at Happy.

"You can still be saved." Happy sighed. "Look, take this lacrima. If you ever change your mind, then you can contact me." He told Zeref, before he flew away, not once looking back at the dark mage who had lost everything.

* * *

The following months passed quickly for Zeref, but he felt numb, it somehow felt like he had lost Natsu all over again. He was accepted into Tartaros, and their labs were excellent, moreover, once they found out about what he was trying to create, they offered help and more and more resouces, as the demon particles would benefit them greatly.

The best part of it all was that they didn't seem to care when the failed particles blew up. The ones that hadn't were taken away and used somewhere as bombs. Well, none of them liked the magic council anyway.

Zeref idly wondered why he felt so hollow, he was closer than ever now, so why did it feel like his heart was being sliced in half over and over? It couldn't be because Happy left, could it? He pushed the thought away and returned to pouring liquid darkness into the glass bottle, then adding various powders. He didn't notice the lone tear that trailed down his face and into the tube as he thought of Happy and Natsu. There was a flash, and Zeref covered his eyes. When he stared back att the bottle, the liquid was pitch black and glowing softly. Zeref cautiously poked it with one finger. He hissed as it left a black mark that trailed up the length of his finger. Then his eyes widened. Just a little, he felt something change, something like he had a new power stirring inside him.

He had done it. He had finally created the demon particles. The power was only slight, but he could feel its potential.

* * *

"So, you've created demon particles?" Mard Geer asked.

"Yes, however..." Zeref started smoothly.

"Oh? Carry on," Mard Geer prompted.

"I request permission to test them on myself, since they are an entirely new substance, there could be unexpected drawbacks. As the creator of such a substance, it is my responsibility to test them accordingly." Zeref told him.

"Hm... Very well, but if there are 'unexpected drawbacks' that are harmful to the rest of the guild, you will be... Dealt with. Am I clear?" Mard challenged.

"Yes." Zeref nodded, before leaving the room.

The first time the visions started, Zeref was alone in his lab, late at night. He had just swallowed a cup of the liquid he had somehow managed to recreate. He wasn't expecting to suddenly feel like he had drunk fire and collapse against his desk. His eyes widened as the room around him disappeared.

 _Natsu was staring at him. Zeref gasped. His brother looked exactly the same as he had all those years ago, still a small child with those round, hopeful eyes. Yet those eyes were now wide with horror._

 _"Natsu?" Zeref asked quietly, not daring to believe that he was actually seeing his brother._

 _The boy flinched and scrambled away from him._

 _"Go... Go away!" Natsu whimped._

 _"B-But... Natsu, it's me, your brother." Zeref was at a loss for words, he couldn't believe that this was his brother. His brother loved him, didn't he?_

 _"No. No!" The pink haired boy covered his ears and shook his head, begining to cry. "Zeref is kind and nice. Not a monster. Shut up!" He wailed._

 _Every word felt like a knife to his heart. He looked down to see his hands covered in blood. No matter hoe much he tried to wipe it off, it just wouldn't go away. It was always there... Had he really... Done this?_

 _No, Natsu... Natsu understood him more than anyone... Happy proved that he didn't, but Natsu was always there for him. He always had been. This couldn't be real._

 _"No... No!"_

Zeref gasped as he found himself on the floor, and he'd just smaked his head on the leg of his desk with all his thrasing around.

"It was... A hallucination?" He whispered. It must've been brought on by the demon particles. Looking at his finger, where he last saw the particles on his skin. He stared in horror. His entire hand was covered in the markings. They coiled down to below his wrist. Then he felt that unfamilar power surge up inside him. This was it. He was so close. He could do this, right?

* * *

As months passed, Zeref's visions started taking a toll on his appearance.

"Are you alright?" Jackal asked one morning. Zeref looked terrible, his hear was greasy, his eyes were dull and he had bags under his eyes. Jackal couldn't see, but his entire arm was covered in the markings, and they had started making their way up his neck.

"Yeah." Zeref yawned, trying to convince himself more than Jackal. "Why did you need to see me again?"

"Well, Mard Geer gave me a mission and I was hoping for advice." The dark guild member admitted sheepishly.

"Sure, what do you need?" Zeref's visions had let him see what he had done, and he never wanted to cause that pain on anyone ever again, yet whenever he thought about leaving, and stopping with the demon particles, he couldn't. Not when he was so close.

"Well, there are rumours that there's a guild in a nearby town. A guild that wants to stop us, and I need to get rid of it." Jackal sighed.

No... The town's people would be at risk. He couldn't just let that happen... "Send Deliora and his team. Tell them it was me who ordered it. That should motivate them." Zeref's eyes widened at his own suggestion. No, he never even thought about saying that, so why did he-

"Thanks, knew I could count on you!" Jackal grinned before jogging off, leaving Zeref standing there, hating his own existance.

He finally snapped. He was hurting more and more people, and he hated it. His visions changed to reflect what he was doing, even though he never wanted to. He couldn't do it, he couldn't stand it any longer. Almost his entire body was covered in black markings. Gathering all his willpower, he reported to Mard Geer that the experiment was a failure, the solution worthless.

His leader didn't seem suprised. Zeref left the guild the next day, not knowing that the demon particles were being made into a bomb. Not knowing that in the next few days, it would become unstable and explode. Not knowing the hatred that every member felt for him, once they finally recovered. That was a truth for another day.

* * *

Zeref hoped that once he'd stopped using the demon particles, the visions at least would go away. They didn't, instead he was plauged with nightmares.

He stopped going into towns, his curse was death, now that he finally understood the true meaning of living, one he would never have, he took it from others. He thought about calling Happy, just to see the Exceed's face. Yet he couldn't. Happy would take one look at Zeref's face, his red eyes and then he would be lost to Zeref forever.

One morning, Zeref sat alone in a dead clearing. The branches bare, the wood groaning, the air cold and harsh. It was better like this, being alone. Even though he so badly wanted company, he wouldn't hurt anyone like this. It was just another curse.

There was a loud snapping sound that startled him out of his thoughts. A small girl had just stepped on a twig and was staring at him.

 **A/N Sorry, this was going to be too long so it's going to be in two parts. Hope you enjoyed!**


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N Hi again, read for the next chapter? Hope you enjoy, and as usual, I don't own Fairy Tail!**

"Go away." Zeref snapped immediately, glaring at the girl. She blinked, and then it was almost like he could see her gathering her courage.

"Who are you?" She asked, not letting her voice tremble, and completely ignoring what he said.

"I said go away." He repeated, turning away, red still glaring at her.

"And I said no." She huffed.

"No, you didn't. You asked me who I was." He pointed out, wondering if he could get her to leave before his curse killed her. If not, she would get a front row seat in his nightmares.

"Well, I thought it. And it's the thought that counts. You still haven't answered me." She argued.

"I'm no one that matters. There, now go!" He was struggling to control his temper, and it came out much louder than he intended. He felt the tiniest bit guilty, but if it got her to leave, it got her to leave.

"That isn't a proper answer. Also, I refuse to leave, and you'll have to make me." She insisted stubbornly.

"Your funeral." He sorely hoped that she couldn't tell he was bluffing, he didn't want to get close enough for his curse to activate.

"Oh really?" She raised an eyebrow. The challenge was practically written all over her face.

"G- Oh man, you're really annoying." Zeref took a step forward.

The girl's eyebrow, if possible, rose a little higher, noticing his catch. "You don't use curse words." She noted.

"I have _some_ standards." He snapped.

"You certainly are very strange." She murmured.

"As are you." He sighed. "Any chance you'll just leave?"

"No!" She took a step forward, and to Zeref's horror, it was enough for the demon particles to activate. There was a rumbling noise as the death curse rose up around him, but something new happened. A light enveloped Mavis, and upon contact with the death curse, both of them vanished. Zeref's eyes widened, but they were ever so fleetlingly black, his normal colour, before the red flooded back and he stepped away.

"W-What are you?" He asked.

"I think I should ask the same thing." She shot back, mind racing. That magic... It had to be what had withered the grass and gnarled the trees, so clearly meant to take life. Yet those eyes, not the crimson mask they wore, they looked so unbearably sad.

"You go first." His entire body had sagged with defeat. It seemed that all the lying, all the fear had caught up to him, and he couldn't bring himself to do it anymore.

"I'm Mavis. I have an odd substance under my control. They are called Fairy Particles, and they give me the strength to fufill my dreams. That is all I will say for now. Your turn." She inisted, eyes narrowed.

"Fine. I'm Zeref, yes, probably the one you've heard rumours about, yes, they're probably all true. I messed up and now I'm stuck with Demon Particles, and they make me do the things in my nightmares. Happy yet?" He snapped.

"No, not really." Mavis sighed, looking sad all of a sudden. "I'm talking to one of the most infamous dark mages, and I can't bring myself to hate you."

"That's suprising. You should." Zeref didn't even look at her.

"I'm going to be back." She warned.

"Good for you." He had already begun to walk away.

* * *

"Hi!" Mavis chirped about a week later.

"What the-? How did you even find me?" He asked, opening his eyes. He could smell something, but he wasn't sure what it was.

"It wasn't exactly hard." She laughed. "I followed the trail of dead things."

"How charming." He rolled his eyes.

"Hush you," She seemed determined to be as cheerful as possible. "I brought coffee!"

"What?" Once again, this girl had suprised him. Instead of answering, she shoved one of the steaming cups she was holding in his face. He picked it up and sipped it. It was suprisingly rich. Oddly enough, he liked it.

"You're very happy today." He decided he may as well start a conversation, as she had brought him a drink.

"Well, I was sad last time, since your story was so sad. It made what I've heard even worse." She sighed.

"Aren't you blunt." He was sorlely regretting even opening his mouth.

"Well," She continued like she hadn't even heard him. "I've decided to help you."

"You don't have many friends, do you?" It seemed the standard response. He really couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Actually... I have lots of friends, I'm part of a guild!" She cheered.

Zeref's heart clenched. She was a member of a light guild, of course. She would be. He had dared to hope that even for a second that she was someone he could relate to.

"Which one?" He fought hard to keep his voice indifferent.

"Fairy Tail." She was beaming now. Any other time, he would've smiled at how her entire face lit up, but he was hearing a different voice saying that name. The one last friend he thought he had. Happy. But that time was over now, wasn't it? Of course it was, he messed it up.

"So, you know Happy?" Mavis asked curiously, deciding to keep the darker stuff for when she knew him better.

"What? Are you some kind of mind reader." He gasped. There was no way... Unless he...

"No, you said that all out loud."

Darn it.

"That too."

"Okay, I think I'm going to go now." He stood up quickly, turning away.

"Okay, I think I'm going to follow you." There was no escaping her, was there?

* * *

"Hey, Zeref, guess what?"

"No."

"But-"

"No."

"Zeref."

"What?"

"Can we play 'Eye Spy'?"

"What's that?"

"A game!"

"No."

"Are you going to stop following me soon?"

"No!"

"Why?"

"I'm going to be your friend."

"W-What?"

"Why are you still here?"

"I'm not leaving until I'm your friend. Huh? Are you alright? That was quite a drop... I should go and check if he's okay."

* * *

"Zeref?" Mavis asked. She had gone back to the town for a few days, since she needed to update the guild on her mission, which had gone absolutely no where. She had also got roped into solving a mission on a missing cat, and it wasn't exactly a fun experience.

"Mavis." He looked completely serious. "We need to talk about exactly what you are reading." In his hand was one of the books Erza had forced her to read. She must've left it there last time...

"No!" She wailed, making him raise an eyebrow.

"Erm, are you okay?"

"It's not what you think!" She screamed, blasting the book with her Fairy Glitter. They watched as it fell to the floor as ashes.

"That's a serious offence for a legal guild. Littering." He scolded teasingly.

"Shut up!"

* * *

"Hey Zeref?" It had been months since she had first met the dark wizard, and strangely enough, she couldn't imagine life without him now. He thought the same, not that he'd ever admit it. Especially not to the girl in question.

"What is it, Mavis?" He also couldn't bring himself to snap at her. It wasn't like she was going to ask something awful. He could put up with eye spy.

"How do you know Happy?" Or not. She looked so innocent and caring when she asked, that he simply froze. How hard would it be to just spin a lie, any old tale would do. Apparently, this had shown on his face, as her eyes filled with regret and they were suddenly caged in a golden box. Zeref looked around in panic, red eyes filled with fear.

"This runs deeper that I thought. I need the truth, if I can help you. You cannot lie in this box." Her voice was quiet, yet Zeref head every word.

"Fine." Zeref spat. He told her everything, right from the start, tone never changing. Not until he reached the part where he reached Natsu and Happy. A tear trailed down his face at each pause.

Mavis was left feeling complete and utter shock. This... This was just too much.

"Zeref, I-" She started, filled with overwhelming self loathing.

"Save it Mavis." Zeref said flatly turning away. He walked away, leaving her like that, alone, surrounded by dead trees and ashes, one thought in her head: _How can I fix this?_

 **A/N Sorry, looks like it'll have to go on to three parts!**


	42. Chapter 42

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.**

Zeref had never been so lonely in the weeks that followed his incident with Mavis. He wanted to go back, find her and apologise. Part of him already knew that her gaze would be filled with nothing but pity, and he wouldn't be able to stand it.

He really had driven everyone away, hadn't he? It was probably for the best, yet the words seemed hollow to even himself. Maybe one day, he would stumble across someone else who wouldn't die whenever his curse activated, someone else who wouldn't judge him after hearing his name. Who was he kidding, it was never going to happen again. He was all alone now, and it wouldn't change. He'd never hear her voice again...

"Zeref!" A frantic voice cried.

Scores: Three to Mavis, Zero to Zeref.

"M-Mavis?" He asked, hardly daring to believe his eyes.

"I'm so sorry!" She wailed, flinging herself at him and hugging him tightly. Zeref's eyes brimmed with tears. When was the last time he had been hugged?

"Why are you sorry?" He choked out.

"Because!" She sniffed.

"Because?" He promted. She shouldn't have to cry. Not because of him.

"Because I forced you to tell me everything, even though you didn't want to, and I should've trusted you... And... And, I knew how to get rid of the Demon Particles all along!" She sobbed. Zeref took several minutes to process what she was saying, as it was all a jumbled mess.

"Wait, you know how to beat them?" He asked at last. Mavis nodded through her tears.

"W-With the one true magic..." She told him.

"And that is?" He asked, feeling like a complete moron.

"Love." She looked at him like he was a moron. The feeling grew stronger.

"Okay... So now what?" He asked after a long silence.

"We need to find someone you love, then they beat the particles out of you!" She told him cheerfully. Thankfully, Zeref knew her well enough to know when she was joking.

"What actually happens?" He asked her, more excited than ever now. Her response was so muffled he could hardly hear it.

"What?" He asked again, leaning closer. Again, her voice had gone all high pitched and squeaky.

"Seriously?" He groaned. She turned to glare at him and something entirely unexpected (for them, everyone else, not so much) happened.

It was around then that Zeref realised that he knew about as much about kissing as Happy did. Which was rather unfortunate for him, since the activity he was now engaged in was exactly that. Any passer by would've seen darkness leaking out of Zeref's entire body, before it turned to gold and disappeared, like it'd never been there at all.

* * *

"Well, that was fun!" Mavis chirped, swinging her legs into the stream they were camping by.

"You think so?" Zeref asked, genuinely curious.

"Yes. We should do it more often." She wasn't looking at him anymore. He took it quite rightly as a sign she was blushing.

"Sure, if you want." This caused Mavis to stare at him. Then she gasped. Zeref looked at her oddly.

"What? Is there something on my face?" He asked, totally bemused.

"Sort of. Your eyes!" She told him, gesturing wildly. Barely daring to believe it, he leaned over and looked into the river, staring at his reflection. His eyes were black again, shining with emotion, every bit as human as Mavis'.

"I'm so happy!" Mavis flung her arms around him, squeezing the life out of him. This normally would've been fine, Zeref was more than used to situations like this, after knowing Mavis for so long. Sadly, Zeref wasn't exactly in a position that inspired balance, so they both went tumbling into the stream. Still, Mavis managed to laugh and splash him, and possibly the greatest mages of their generation engaged in the most deadly splash fight of what would've been a decade, (if later, Fairy Tail hadn't gone to the beach) but records like that were rather hard to keep.

"Mavis?"

"Yes?"

"Weren't you on a job, like, from your guild."

"Hey Zeref."

"Yes."

"Do you reckon they'll be mad at me if they realised that I forgot?"

"Nah. What was it?"

The resulting answer took her about an hour to explain.

"Want some help?"

"Why, are you offering?"

"That _is_ why I asked, yes."

"Thank you so much!"

* * *

The quest in itself was an adventure that many would kill to hear. It involved much screaming, life threatening experiences and kissing. It was also a story for another time, as Zeref was jolted back to reality by a shark swimming right past his face. In a desperate attept to get away from Mavis, none the less. Zeref rolled his eyes and grabbed it's tail, grip enhanced by his magic, he swam back to Mavis.

"You missed one!" He called.

"Really? Direct it to meet with the others. Thanks!" She sounded really happy. She had grouped all the sharks into a massive circle, and they were twitching nervously.

Zeref watched with mild amusement as Mavis glared at the sharks and proceeded to tell them all off. Not that they could understand a word she said, in fact the sharks looked like they were ready to eat her. One started edging forwards... Only to be sent reeling back by the deadly glare Zeref sent it. The sudden movement scared pretty much all of the sharks, and they all swam as quickly as they could for the relative safety of the deeper waters. Mavis turned to him.

"I know, I'm sorry." Zeref said quickly before she could even frown. "I can buy you ice cream as an apology."

Mavis' face lit up with that smile he loved so much. Every second of this was worth it.

* * *

Makarov had fallen asleep. On the beach, surrounded by his brats. Why did fate hate him so much? He found himself burried. With a magic restraining bracelet on his head, so he couldn't burst his way out with his Titan magic. It sucked, as the sand was tucked right under his chin and pressing against the back of his neck, so he could't move to knock the bracelet off. He was well and truly stuck.

It wasn't that much of a problem. He had a good view of the young generation having the time of their lives. In a spash fight, none the less.

At some point, the people hunting sharks had come back, their diving equipment piled neatly, and he would bet that had something to do with either Mavis or Zeref, on the sand beside him. He smiled to himself as he watched Natsu soak Lucy then hide behind Gray as she used her Aquarius star dress to try and get her revenge. Gray tried to splash Natsu after he recovered from Lucy's miniture tidal wave, but failed miserably and got Wendy in the face. This annoyed pretty much all of the dragon slayers, every female member of the guild and every Exceed. Everyone had a soft spot for Wendy.

Gray tried to swim away, but it appeared he was surrounded. "Oh ****!" Was the last thing he managed to say before he was absolutely soaked to the bones.

"Gray, language!" Erza barked.

"****! Oh ****, sorry." He yelped, as her expression grew darker.

"What's a ****?" Wendy asked. Lucy screeched as Loke appeared, and started to whisper in Wendy's ear.

"So not happening!" The blonde yelled, kicking her spirit away.

"Zeref?" Mavis whispered loudly.

"Yes, what is it Mavis?" He responded calmly.

"What's a ****?" If looks could kill, Gray would be dead several times over.

"There's no way that she didn't know that." He defended.

Mavis' eyes brimmed with tears. "What's that supposed to mean?" She whimpered.

"Never mind Mavis, you're innocent." Zeref soothed, glaring daggers at a rather unfortunate ice wizard. "It doesn't mean anything."

"R-Really?"

"Yes."

"Gray?"

"What is it Flame-Brain?"

"You do know that Zeref's gonna kill you, right?"

"The thought crossed my mind."

"Then why the hell aren't you running?"

"Bye!"

"Natsu?"

"Yes, Luce?"

"Why tell him to run? You hate him."

"True. So, I don't want my brother to feel bad because of him."

"Wow. That's... Sort of sweet and terrifying at the same time."

"I know. Hey Luce?"

"Yes?"

"Can we talk soon? Priately."

"Sure. Just let me know when."

"Thanks, Luce. That means a lot to me."

Makarov dimly wondered if he should be hearing this. Then again, he always liked hearing what was going on with his brats. It was amazing gossip, and very entertaining.


	43. Chapter 43

Gajeel tried to enjoy the rest of the day, he really did. He talked to Levy, who seemed to notice something was wrong straight away. She had asked of course, but he convinced her to wait a while, let him sort it out. She was still worried, exactly what he didn't want, so he cheered her up by suggesting they go and get some ice cream. He didn't really know what it was, but everyone got all excited whenever it was mentioned.

Gajeel stared at his cone in confusion. He had completely copied the Shrimp on his choice of flavour.

"You don't know what do do, do you?" She asked, giggling.

"Shaddup and tell me." He grunted.

The resulting fits of laughter were almost enough to make him give up on the human speicies entirely.

"Why do I bother?" He wondered.

"Levy!" Jet and Droy practically screamed, racing up to them. Jet 'accidently' tripped over, then crashed into Gajeel. Gajeel didn't bother saying anything; he was far too used to stunts like this happening.

"Oh no, Gajeel, are you okay?" Levy gasped.

"Yeah." Gajeel grunted, rolling his eyes. He ignored the fact that his food was in the sand. Whatever ice cream was, it could wait.

"Gajeel, your ice cream!" She pointed out.

"Eh, I can have one another day. Looks like we're heading back to the hotel, let's go Shrimp." He muttered, putting an arm around her shoulders and steering her back towards where the others had gathered.

He noticed that Natsu was standing with Zeref and Lucy, not anywhere near the dragon slayers and his heart sank. They really had messed up, hadn't they? He hoped they could fix it. Cobra seemed to hear his depressing thoughts and looked up sharply from where he was holding Kinana's hand. His eyes seemed to ask a silent question: _What happened?_

Gajeel remembered what they used to do on the battlefield and replied with his thoughts. They'd have to talk later, probably when they got back to the hotel.

Levy skipped along, hand tucked into his, humming merrily. He didn't have the heart to take his hand away, despite the glares of Jet and Droy. He wasn't scared of them, but they hurt his ears with their screaming. It really wasn't worth the effort.

* * *

Wendy darted into the storage room, coming face to face with the other dragon slayers.

"What is this all about?" She asked, eyebrows raising as she realised Natsu wasn't with them. She had guessed that it'd be all the dragon slayers. Cobra seemed to have heard her thoughts, and also seemed to have told the others the exact same thing.

"Natsu isn't here because we're talking about him. It's too urgent to leave until after the trip." He sighed. "Gajeel's gonna explain it, as it happened when he was shark hunting."

Wendy's heart dropped with every word. They had actually broken the promise that they made, that kept each of them going. In that moment, she felt so guilty that she couldn't stand it.

"We really messed up, didn't we?" She whispered. The rest of them nodded numbly. Cobra, it appeared, hadn't heard the entire story, and was just as shocked as the rest of them.

"We've got to fix this." Sting sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry." Rogue whispered. Every head in the room turned to him. "If I wasn't captured, some of you would've been able to go after him... I'm sorry."

Laxus raised an eyebrow. "That wasn't your fault. We all screwed up, but you didn't. There was no way that you could've, you were captured, heck, you had enough on your plate without all of this."

"What are you trying to say?" Wendy asked, eyes narrowing.

"Nothing." Laxus sounded genuinely suprised. "Just that Rogue hasn't done anything wrong here, he shouldn't have to go through this."

Wendy frowned but held her tongue. Cobra heard what she was thinking and also looked at Laxus oddly. If any passer by had heard that and guessed what she had, it would not have ended well.

"Any ideas how to solve this?" Gajeel interrupted harshly. It appeared he got the silent message, however accidental, as well.

They didn't need Cobra to sum anything up. They all knew they had reached a blank.

* * *

"Hi Natsu!" Wendy chirped. She had found him talking to Lucy on the beach, and Lucy had been called over by Mira, something about needing help with a picnic.

"Hi Wendy." He beamed. Any other time she wouldn't have guessed that anything was wrong.

"How are you?" She started politely. He suprised her by laughing.

"You don't need to be so formal Wendy. Man, we haven't talked in forever." He smiled at her, and she couldn't help but wonder if it was acting.

"Well, I haven't seen you in a while." She pointed out shyly.

"Sorry about that. I needed to get that training done though, those markings didn't look the best." He laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.

At this point, Wendy was so confused over what she had heard and how he was acting that she decided she had no choice but to cut straight to the point.

"Are you mad at us for not coming to help you? For breaking our promise?" She asked quietly, eyes fixed on his face.

Almost instantly, his eyes darkened. "No." He said, tone flat. "I'm not mad."

"B-But..." She began, but stopped herself.

"Don't worry about it. I'll be fine." He said. Wendy didn't need to hear the words he didn't say. They both knew that he wasn't fine, and he wouldn't be for a long while. Not while this rift between him and the dragon slayers grew.

* * *

"Hey, what's wrong?" Kinana asked softly. Cobra looked at her. She looked so anxious and beautiful at the same time.

"Nothing... I just... Upset someone close to me." He sighed. "I did something bad and I'm not sure I can fix it."

Kinana took his hand with a smile. "Don't worry, Cobra. You'll be fine in the end. Nobody can truly hate someone else forever, not if they try to fix it. Not if they don't repeat their mistakes." She told him. He smiled at her, hugging her close in that moment.

"Thanks. That helped. A lot." He grinned. She smiled and dragged him towards the sea. He hadn't quite become accustomed to the soft whisper of the waves, the gentle lapping of the water. The human world was so full of wonders. Sights, feelings and people that simply couldn't be replaced.

* * *

"Didn't go so well, huh?" Rogue asked, looking at Wendy. She nodded sadly.

"He says he's not mad." She sighed.

"What's going on?" Frosch asked, blinking.

"Nothing, don't worry Frosch." Rogue said, all his features softening as he looked at the small Exceed.

"Aww." Wendy laughed. She looked down a second later to see Frosch tugging on her hand. For someone so small, he sure could move fast.

"Can you come to the... Uh, rock pools with us _please_?" He begged. Wendy felt he heart melt at the sight.

"Sure." She beamed. Rogue smiled and the three headed over to the rock pools, peering into the murky depths. Wendy though she saw movement under a nearby cluster of rocks. Crouching down, she tilted her head so she could see better. Something scuttled towards her and...

"Ouch!" She wailed, holding her nose. What she now recognised to be a crab raced into the water and disappeared in the murk it kicked up.

"What's wrong?" Rogue asked.

"A crab got me in the nose." She sniffed.

"Here, let me look at it." He offered. He stared at her nose.

"It hasn't even broken the skin, you'll be fine." He laughed.

"Are you okay?" Frosch asked, running over, eyes round with concern.

"Yes." She said as evenly as possible, wondering how Rogue would like it if she threw a crab at him as payback for laughing.

* * *

"Natsu, put it back!" Lucy screamed.

"Why?" He looked completely confused.

"It's, gah, how did you even catch that?" She wailed.

"I imagine he went diving." Evergreen remarked from behind her fan.

"Diving is MANLY." Elfman agreed.

"Why are there even lobsters at this beach? This is so messed up." She muttered, glaring daggers at the wriggling sea creature held firmly in Natsu's hands.

"What on earth have you got there?" Makarov asked, coming over. He stared at the lobster for a second. "How the heck did you catch that?"

Natsu shrugged, looking sheepish. "I saw it moving and went after it."

"There aren't even supposed to be lobsters or sharks near here." Lucy muttered. "This is so messed up."

"Is it? Seems normal to me." Natsu looked utterly bemused. "Am I supposed to get rid of this?" He asked, looking down at the squirming lobster.

"YES!" Lucy cried, leaping away.

"Why?" He asked again.

"Because!" She wailed.

"Can I just throw it back in then?" He asked cluelessly.

"Whatever, just get rid of it." She yelled.

"Fine." The Master face palmed as Natsu threw it back into the sea, where it landed with a loud splash. They watched the trail of bubbles sink.

"Will it be alright?" Evergreen wondered.

Makarov resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "It will, the shell on it's body is tough for a reason."

"Like dragon scales?" Natsu asked.

"Not that tough." He sighed.

"Oops?"


	44. Chapter 44

"So, there's going to be an eating contest?" Laxus asked, looking at the flyer Freed had just read to him. He was learning to read, but the process was slow.

"Yes, there's no entry fee, and the prize is about twenty thousand jewl. Quite a few members of the guild are planning on entering, or so I have heard." Freed nodded.

"Seems cool, might as well try it." He shrugged. "Are you going to?"

"No. I shall faithfully cheer you on instead." His friend told him.

"Thanks?" Laxus wasn't quite sure what to say to that.

* * *

The eating contest was a held on the beach that evening. There were countless tables laden with meals, and there was one table much longer that the rest with seats on it. Somehow, the reporter, Jason had found them yet again, and was doing a running commentary on it yet again. The two new Exceeds looked guilty and avoided the reporter at all costs, and Laxus, thinking about it, really didn't want to know.

"Alright, can all the COOL competetors please take a seat?" He cried into a random microphone that had appeared out of no where.

Laxus was really begining to regret his choice...

"Alright, we have, guys, get ready, this is a long list... The people competing are none other than Erza Scarlet, Natsu Dragneel, Gray and Mika Fullbuster, Elfman Strauss, Bixlow, Laxus Dreyar and last but not least, Droy!" He screamed into his microphone. It was so loud, it could probably be heard all over Fiore.

"This is going to be so intense. Allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllright then, let's get started, waiters, are you ready? No, then go, so we can get this COOL contest started. It's going to be so COOL!" He asked. The people who were wearing protective suits and disposable gloves grabbed plates and marched over to the tables, putting the food down in front of the competitors.

"There will be refills of water, and the second you're stuffed, just press the red button to your right. Oh, and they will only respond to your fingerprints, since in the past, people have pressed other people's buttons. Oh well, that's all. Ready. Set. Go!" He screamed.

Almost immediately, food started flying everwhere. Wendy, Yukino, Levy and Lucy decided that then would be a great time for a little evening swim, since staying on the beach was far too risky. Rogue soon decided to join them with Frosch, and Sting came too, though everyone thought it was probably so he could have an excuse to talk to Yukino.

* * *

"Oh dear." Mavis sighed as she watched food fly everywhere. She didn't look particually worried as it all had somehow yet to hit her. Zeref on the other hand.

"I should've seen this coming." He said flatly, taking a smart step back. He was almost hit by a rogue drumstick but he grabbed the nearest thing to use as a sheild.

"Thanks." Makarov complained. He didn't particually enjoy being used as a shield.

"Hey Carla?" Happy asked, flying over to where they were crouched behing Gajeel.

"What? If you're asking me to share a fish then the answer is no." She snapped.

"You should probably give up with trying to get her to have a fish." Pantherlily advised his friend.

"I wasn't going to ask that." Happy sighed. "I was wondering where Kinana and Cobra were, since he promised to tell me what Lushie's thoughts were so I could tease her."

"Riiiiiiiight, you're mental." Gajeel said, edging away, leaving them with no cover from the disaster that was the eating contest.

"Yes, that is rather disturbing. And for your information, Cobra has taken Kinana out on a date, as humans call it." Carla sniffed. Neither had noticed that Pantherlily had abandoned them in favour of using Evergreen as cover. He really didn't want to have to wash his fur out after this.

"Oh... Carla?"

"What is it, tomcat?"

"I think we should move... I think there's an entire roast turkey coming this way."

"For once, I agree."

"Freed, do something!" Jet screamed at his guildmate. With a glare, Freed took out his sword and a second later, the food was deflected by his runes. The remaining members that had chosen to watch sighed in relief. Unfortunately, they could now hear Jason's commentary.

"Woah, would you look at the speed of these people eating, already, we're almost a fith of the way though our food supply! So COOL!"

"I really don't want to know..." Zeref stated, backing away.

"I do... Okay, changed my mind, let's go now!" Cana said quickly, edging away.

"Go Laxus!" Freed cheered.

"And first out is Droy, so COOL! Wait, wait, Elfman and Bixlow have also given up... Unfortunately, they just missed the halfway point... And onto the cake- WHAT'S THIS? ERZA SCARLET HAS TAKEN THE LEAD IN ALMOST THIRTY SECONDS? SO COOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!"

"That's Erza for you..." Everyone sighed.

"And onto the vegtables- what? Erza has quit? Aww, there was the totally COOL ending to her first place lead... SO COOL!" Jason was jumping up and down and screaming.

They looked up as Virgo walked over, somehow unaffected by the food.

"Princess wishes to know if it is safe to come back yet." She stated.

"It really isn't... Sorry." Mavis sighed.

"Right." Virgo nodded. "Thank you. I shall report back to Princess now."

"Right." None of them were sure what else to say.

"Tell the Celestial Spirit King I say hi!" Mavis called.

"Yeah, tell him we say hi!" Zeref added.

"I shall do so. Goodbye." Virgo called, but she smiled at the two wizards.

"You know the king of those weird key guys?" Gajeel asked.

"They're Celestial Spirits, and yes." Zeref nodded.

"HOW?" Everyone cried.

Mavis shuffled her feet awkwardly. "It's a long story."

"A _very_ long story." Zeref added for effect.

"Well, can you see this contest ending any time soon?" Makarov pointed out dryly.

"Zeref?" Mavis asked.

"What?" He asked, not liking the look in her eye.

"Can you tell the story?"

"No."

"But-"

"No. If I do, you're doing it with me."

"But-"

"No. Nice try."

"WILL ONE OF YOU JUST TELL US?"

* * *

"So, let me get this straight. Zeref helped you on your mission." Makarov asked, only now getting what they had just told everyone.

"Yes." Mavis nodded sagely, while Zeref backed away, covering his ears. The rest of the guild followed his example.

"While he was still a famous criminal, who had death magic." Makarov could feel the headache coming.

"I still have it." Zeref offered. Makarov groaned.

"Yep." Mavis smiled merrily.

"WHY WOULD YOU DO SOMETHING SO UTTERLY RECKLESS. HE COULD'VE KILLED YOU!"

"Actually," Zeref butted in. "I couldn't, her magic nullified my curse."

"YOU TRIED?" Makarov screamed.

"Not intentionally. My curse was... Difficult." Zeref said delicately.

"You still tried to kill Mavis." Makarov snarled, glaring at the dark mage. He'd never forgive anyone who hurt one of his children.

"Don't be mean, Makarov." Mavis chided, stepping between them. "You don't know the full story, nor what Zeref was going through, so can you please stop your judgement?" She asked politely, but there was a hint of anger in her tone.

Zeref was glaring at Makarov at even the suggestion that he would hurt Mavis.

"Fine, I'll listen. Not now but later. There had better be a good reason for this." Makarov growled.

"SO COOOL! WE'RE DOWN TO THE LAST TWO COMPETETORS. THAT'S RIGHT, NATSU DRAGNEEL AND GRAY FULLBUSTER ARE THE LAST TWO STANDING! WHAT'S THIS? NATSU HAS RANDOMLY COLLAPSED FROM EATING TOO MUCH? THAT LEAVES GRAY AS THE VICTOR!"

"Wait." Gray blinked. "You mean this was a contest?"


	45. Chapter 45

"Moron." Zeref laughed as he looked down at his brother, who had actually passed out from eating so much.

He watched as his brother's expression turned to one of fear and black markings suddenly appeared on his arm.

"What the... No way..." Zeref whispered. He knew that Lucy had agreed to talk to Natsu, and he hoped that she wouldn't judge him, then being accepted by someone they loved would stop the negative effects of the demon particles. At least, that's what should happen.

Natsu woke up with a start. He looked around to see Zeref watching him in concern.

"Hi... Zeref, did anyone see that?" He asked, looking uncharactaristically afraid.

"See what?" Zeref asked. "You passed out because ate too much food, right? Unless..." He trailed off and Natsu nodded, comfirming his suspicions.

"It was the demon particles again... Zeref, help please..." Natsu whispered. "They're... The dreams." He shuddered.

Zeref realised with a start he was crying. Everything he'd gone through, been forced to endure had now been inflicted on his brother. Seeing the usually happy dragon slayer in such a state was a cruel reminder or another thing he'd failed to protect his brother from.

"Zeref, your eyes." Natsu pointed out. Zeref guessed his eyes had turned red in response to his curse. He tried to shut it out, thinking of Mavis, Natsu, pretty much anything that reminded him of love.

"Zeref!" He was snapped out of his thoughts by Natsu. The black markings still covered his arm.

"Are you okay?" He asked, the markings must be like his eyes. If that was the case, then his brother must most definately not be okay.

"No time for that. Erza!" Natsu shouted.

"What?" Zeref asked, confused.

"Erza, she'll have gone through this as well. But wherever she is, there's a good chance she's alone." Natsu explained, racing off. Zeref hadn't been a member of Fairy Tail for long, but he already cared so much about the guild and everyone in it. It was nice, having friends, and he'd spent a long time training with Natsu and Erza...

* * *

It was mid afternoon when Mavis decided that Zeref had been hiding in his room too long and went to check on him. She skipped into the room.

"Zeref, stop being an emo..." She started cheerfully, but was suprised to see that the room was empty, and by the looks of things, had been for a while. Frowning, she looked around, but it was almost like her blood froze in her veins when she sensed a familiar energy.

"Zeref Dragneel, I am going to _murder_ you..."

She raced outside and almost pounced on the first person she saw walking along the hall.

"Have you seen Zeref and Natsu?" She asked frantically.

"Yeah, earlier this morning I think. They were in quite a hurry, they knocked me over... Why?" He asked, closing his eyes in thought.

"What colour were Zeref's eyes?" She nearly shouted.

"Now that you mention it, they were red, does he wear contacts?" Jet muttered, a bit put off by how loud she was getting.

"What about Natsu, was there anything off about his appearance?" She questioned, not at all liking where this was going.

"Actually, it looked like he had a tatoo on his arm." Jet thought out loud.

Mavis said something very rude, that made Jet wonder where on earth she had learned half the words. (Somewhere, Master Hades felt a chill go down his spine.)

"Lucy!" Mavis cried, grabbing the blonde's arm. "Come with me, it's urgent!"

"What? Mavis-" Lucy sounded quite rightfully startled.

"No time for questions. Send one of your spirits to get Jellal, and it needs to be fast." Mavis ordered, dragging Lucy off, much to the suprise of Angel and Yukino.

Virgo popped up without being summoned. "I shall do as requested, Princess." She nodded, before racing off.

"What's going on?" Lucy asked loudly as she was tugged along the beach.

"Wendy, can you do me a favour?" Mavis asked, pulling them to a halt by the young dragon slayer.

"What is it?" The young girl asked.

"I need you to track Natsu and Zeref for me. No time for questions." Something in her tone must've convinced Wendy, as she nodded.

"Follow me." She told them, turning and running.

* * *

"What's going on?" Jellal asked, after he had been thrown at them by Virgo.

"I sensed demon particles. Both Zeref and Natsu apparently reacted to it, meaning there's an eighty percent chance they went after Erza. If all of them are in the same area and there is another reaction, there is an insanely high percentage chance that the response will be negative and they will probably attack us." She told them so quickly that it took them a while to actually understand what she had said.

"Wait, I thought that they had training to help with this." Jellal yelped.

"Yes," Mavis ignored the strange looks Wendy was giving them. "But that was so they could control their powers and not destroy everything around them. This, however, is different, and they have to deal with the curse, their emotions, and the nightmares."

"The curse?" Lucy asked. This wasn't going to be good, was it?

"It makes them do the opposite of what they want to do... Sort of." Mavis supplied. Wendy nearly tripped over when she heard that news.

"So that's why Erza's been going off alone a lot." Jellal muttered.

"And Natsu's been sort of depressed..." Wendy mumbled.

"Am I the only one who thinks that that explained virtually nothing?" Lucy wondered.

"We're here!" Wendy announced, making them all skid to a halt. They had come a long was down the beach, and there was no one around. Of course, apart from the three figues slumped in the shade of one of the cliffs.

"Natsu!" Lucy cried, rushing forwards. Mavis suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.

"This isn't good." She warned.

"But-"

"Have your magic at the ready." Mavis ordered.

Cautiously, the three crept forwards. It looked like the other mages were knocked out, as they weren't moving.

"What on earth is this?" Jellal whispered.

"I don't know, be careful." Mavis hissed.

"Go away." One of them hissed. It was almost too quiet to hear, let alone tell who said it.

"Oh, so you're not asleep." Mavis said cheerfully. This, apparently, was not the best thing to say, as a pair of glowing red eyes glared at her.

"Hi, Zeref." She chirped.

"Uh, Mavis, I don't think that's working." Lucy whispered loudly.

"Hush, you won't know until you try. Why are you just standing there, go and deal with your respective lovers!" She huffed. Wendy stood there, looking awkward, until Lucy grabbed her hand and pulled her towards Natsu.

* * *

"Why are you here?" He asked quietly. They couldn't tell in the bad light, but it looked like he had been crying. Whatever these demon particles did, it wasn't good.

"We're here because we care." Lucy said confidently. Wendy nodded.

"No you don't. Go away." He snapped. As his head turned, they could see the black markings had reached his face.

"Erza, are you okay?" Jellal asked hesitantly.

"I'm fine. Leave." Her voice was muffled.

"Erza-"

"No."

"You need to tell me what's wrong."

"Your existance. Now go."

"You don't mean that."

"Yes I do." There was a sudden gleam in the shadows, and Jellal realised that she had a blade in her hand. Gathering on what he knew of the nature of demon particles and curses, he guessed that magic wouldn't work on this blade. She meant buisness.

"Guys, back up, I'm going to use Law!" Mavis called.

A dazzling bright light filled the area. As it died away, the three mages were left unconcious, dark markings gone, in fact, they looked rather peaceful.

"Why?" Mavis wondered. "Why did they leave it so late, to go for help... Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that they go _super_ emo with these things. And they have virtually no sense of humour..."

* * *

"I wonder where Mavis, Zeref, Lucy, Erza, Jellal, Wendy and Natsu are." Levy wondered.

"I wouldn't worry, Shrimp, they're probably-" Gajeel started, but was quickly cut off.

"Natsu and Lucy are probably getting married!" Mira squealed.

"What? That doesn't make any sense." Cobra pointed out.

"Of course it does! They've run off to get married on the beach, and Zeref, Mavis, Erza, Wendy and Jellal followed to attend the service." Mira told them, jumping up and down.

"How does that even-" Half of the guild started.

"SHUT UP! I'M SHIPPING IT!" She screamed.

"I don't even want to know." Makarov decided, walking away. No one could blame him.


	46. Chapter 46

Mavis watched the unconcious mages carefully. Groaning, Zeref sat up, but Mavis didn't allow herself to move.

"My head... What happe-" Zeref was cut off as he grunted, as the memories clearly came back. "Sorry Mavis," He sighed. "I lost control, the explosion and concentration was too big."

"I gathered that." She said dryly.

"Don't be like that..." He sighed. "Can you at least tell me why you're annoyed?"

"Why leave it so long? Why did you allow them to get so bad?" She hissed.

"I didn't allow anything." Zeref raised an eyebrow. "You know as well as anyone that only they can decide when to take actions."

"I..." Mavis found herself at a loss for words. "Fair enough, I guess. Still, you know you should've started warning them."

Zeref stared at his hands, tears rolling down his cheeks. "I know... I should've been more careful... Why didn't I see the signs?" He cursed, full of self loathing.

"Don't worry, we can still fix this." She soothed, finally rushing over to hug him. "We can still fix it."

There was a pause, then Zeref finally admitted what they had just both just been thinking. "I get the distinct feeling that the problems are solving themselves right now."

"They probably are." Mavis agreed.

* * *

"I'm sorry." Natsu had woken up, and the first thing he did was apologize. He had met their eyes, and both Lucy and Wendy could see how serious he was.

"What for?" Wendy asked. She had been rather nervous about this, not sure how he was going to react.

"I wasn't fair to you. Any of you, not Lucy, not you, not the rest of the dragon slayers." He sighed. This was so out of character, especially for him, but Lucy and Wendy guessed that this was the effect that the demon particles had on people.

"What did you do?" Lucy asked softly.

"I lied to you, when I said everything was okay. I bottled everything up inside and then took it out on the dragon slayers. I'm sorry." He blurted.

"B-But that wasn't your fault, we were the ones that broke the promise!" Wendy squeaked.

Natsu shook his head. "I wasn't mad about that, I never was. I was sad for a second, but then I remembered that you wouldn't have done it unless you were sure I would be okay. I don't hold anything against any of you."

Wendy sank to her knees, weak with relief. Then she sat bolt upright. "What about now? Are you okay now?"

Natsu laughed quietly. "I think so..." He caught sight of Lucy's expression and gulped.

"You have thirty seconds." She snarled. "To explain why you didn't tell me you were going through all of this alone."

"You know... I think I'm going to go and tell the other dragon slayers, bye!" Wendy said quickly, stepping away and them, using a speed enhancement, before vanishing.

"Well?" Lucy asked dangerously. It looked like she had taken lessons from Aquarius on how to be terrifying.

"I'm sorry. I-I didn't want to worry you... And..." Natsu trailed off. Lucy's glare has softened a bit.

"What, you can tell me, you know that." Lucy said, voice gentle now.

"I know, I'm sorry Luce... I just wasn't ready to face it myself... There are things I need to tell you... I'm so, so sorry."

"You _idiot_!" Lucy wailed. "I get that. You needed time, but you never, ever had to keep it all to yourself. Do you know how useless you made me feel?"

"I-I didn't think... Sorry Luce..." He mumbled, hiding his face in his scarf.

"I guess I can forgive you, just this once..." She sighed, edging closer. "If the demon particles are messing with you, you have to tell me, so I can help."

"I know... I probably need to tell you a lot of stuff." He murmured, taking her hand. "Like what a mate is..."

* * *

Erza blinked, noticing the light streaming down, slightly dimmed by the rock she had been sleeping behind. That was odd... She remembered going here after the eating contest, feeling the demon particles stirring. Then the next afternoon, Zeref and Natsu had found here, there had been an explosion, then... Everything was blurry, but she though she remembered Jellal trying to talk to her...

Gasping, she sat bolt upright. Looking around, she noticed that Jellal was sitting with crossed legs, watching her with an unreadable expression.

"J-Jellal." She stuttered. She was never sure how to act around him, as she was certain that he could see right through her strong act, her own mental armour, twisted out of emotions.

"Erza." He said calmly. She stared at him, unsure of what to do.

"I-I... What happened?" She asked, blinking. She had to know that before she could even try to think of what to say.

"Do you really want to know." Jellal's gaze was filled with pity, and Erza hated it.

"Yes." She huffed, despite the feeling that it wasn't going to be good.

"You told me you had a problem with my existance, and tried to kill me." He told her flatly.

Erza felt her blood turn to ice... Did this mean that the last vision was real? The last thing before now was being trapped, watching herself snarl at Jellal, racing forwards, cursed blade at the ready and... A blinding flash of light, an overpowering sense of horror and that was it. The light... It was rather similar to... Oh, Mavis had used law. That made sense.

"So that last vision was real..." Erza gulped.

"Vision? What do you mean?" Jellal asked sharply.

"Nothing." She didn't want to drag anyone else into this. It was her problem , and hers alone to bear.

"Erza, you don't have to be strong all the time." Jellal said softly. "It's okay to share your problems... E-especially this... I-It's all my... It's all my fault." Erza was shocked to see him crying.

"How is this your fault?" Erza found herself asking.

"If I-I hadn't gone after Tartaros... T-They never would've g-gone for you." He admitted, shoulders shaking with the force of his sobs.

"That's not your fault... You didn't know. Jellal, stop. Listen to me- this is _not_ your fault." Erza put her hands on his shoulders, looking him in the eye.

"But... Erza, look at what's happened to you. How can you say that?" He asked, wiping his tears away with the back of his sleeve.

"Because it truly wasn't your fault. You took away their sub guilds because of the suffering they caused. You had no way of knowing how low they would stoop for their revenge. Stop blaming yourself Jellal. They did this, not you." She told him firmly.

He smiled slightly. "Thank you."

Erza smiled. She nearly flinched away as the image of his face flickered and she was seeing it splattered with blood, eyes widening in suprise and horror. For a fleeting moment his expression turned to hate , before she blinked, only to see his eyes softened with concern.

"Are you okay? You look really pale." He asked, clutching her hand.

"Y-Yeah." She breathed. "Just a hallucination."

"Erza? What was it? Please... Let me help you." He pleaded. Erza couldn't help but smile. Jellal... The boy who had always been there for her, helping her live in the tower of heaven, distancing himself from society and not revealing that she knew him, in fear that the council would take her in for questioning. Jellal who reached out his hand, ready to pull her from her greatest fear once more.

She took his hand and for the first time, sobbed into his shoulder, letting all her worries and pain out. It didn't matter, he didn't mind that she couldn't always be strong. He was there for her, and that was all that mattered.

* * *

"Why do I feel like something important is happening?" Laxus asked no one in particular.

"Who knows." Makarov grunted, but he was ignored, as Mirajane had just let out a loud squeal.

"I bet something romantic is happening!" She cooed, eyes sparkling.

"That's total-" Makarov started.

"Actually... I actually agree with you, she-demon." Laxus nodded.

"Really? Why?" She asked, jumping up and down.

"Gut instinct. It has yet to be wrong, so you never know." He shrugged.

"Yay! I bet it's between Natsu and Lucy! They are my favourite ship..." Mira sighed happily.

"I'm so going to regret asking this... Hey, she-demon. What's a ship?"


	47. Chapter 47

"Guys!" Wendy skidded to a halt on the beach.

"Hey Wendy, where were you for the past... Has it really been a day?" Jet asked.

"Oh, I was with Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Jellal, Mavis and Zeref." She chirped happily.

"A whole day! Weren't you hungry?" Droy asked, looking up from his massive salad.

"No... I just ate the air if I was hungry... The air by the sea tastes a bit salty, but it's probably to do with the water... I prefer forest air, since it's nice and fresh..." Wendy trailed off thoughtfully, oblivious to the shock of the two mages beside her.

"Wait, you can eat _air_?" Jet cried.

"Well yeah... Haven't you seen it?" Wendy asked. "Then again, I can't recall us actually eating our elements around you guys. That's odd." She murmured.

"No, what do you mean 'eating your elements'?" Droy asked curiously.

"Well, another way that the dragon slayers can power up is by eating their own element." Wendy told them. "Like how I can eat air, Gajeel can eat iron, Laxus can eat lightning and Cobra can eat poison."

"Really? That's so cool!" Droy cried.

"I suppose. It came in handy in battle." Wendy shrugged.

"Weren't you just support?" Droy blurted.

Wendy's gaze darkened almost immediately. "If you think I'm 'just support' I welcome you to try and fight me." She scowled.

"Look, we don't want to hurt you." Jet started.

"No, please. I insist." Wendy said darkly.

* * *

"What's going on?" Kinana asked, staring at the gathering crowd.

"Jet and Droy annoyed Wendy, so she challenged them to a fight." Cobra summed up.

"What? What if they hurt her?" Kinana gasped. Cobra shrugged.

"If she goes into dragon force, it's game over." He told her. "When it's life or death, nobody's 'just support'. Anyway, all of us helped train her at some point."

"Oh..." Kinana mumbled.

"Bets anyone?" Cana called.

"Okay, no serious wounds, that's the only rule." Master announced. "You may begin."

There was a flash of light, and Wendy's form had changed. She now had pink hair and glowing crystals on her wrists and on her back.

Cobra let out a low whistle. "They must have really pissed her off, with her using dragon force right off the bat."

Wendy let out a low growl, before dashing forwards, kicking Droy hard in the chest, sliding under Jet's punch and catching him with a Sky Dragon's Wing Attack.

Needless to say, from there on, the fight went only downhill. For Jet and Droy, Wendy however only performed better and better.

"Okay, let's stop this here." Makarov called, stepping in about ten seconds after Wendy had used her Poison Sky Dragon Force. Jet and Droy hadn't got a single hit in. Wendy looked suitably guilty and started healing them.

"Why did the crystals turn pink?" Kinana asked.

"Oh, it was the poison from her Poison Sky Dragon Mode. Hey... I wonder..." Cobra trailed off thoughfully. He walked over to Wendy and tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey, I never thought to ask you, but can you hear people's thoughts in your Poison Sky Dragon Mode?"

"Actually..." She shuffled nervously. "I can, but just snatches."

"Right..." Cobra made a mental note of how dangerous Wendy was in that mode... "Well, that's cool!" He smiled. That was pretty cool! As long as it was never used against him.

"It is pretty handy... I feel bad now." She sighed, looking back at Jet and Droy.

"Well, I really wouldn't. They were stupid enough to challenge you." He shrugged.

"But I... Nevermind." She sighed. "Oh yeah, Natsu is okay now, and he'll be coming back soon. Probably in one piece. Lucy isn't that mean."

"Is he sorting this whole Demon Particle thing out?" Cobra wondered. He still had to make it up to the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Yeah, though I'm not sure how. Lucy looked like she was going to kill him, so I got out of there fast." She admitted.

"Fair enough." He smiled. At least this trouble was coming to a close...

* * *

"Gray?" Juvia asked, edging closer.

"Yeah, what do you want?" Gray responded.

"Juvia was wondering if you wanted to go swimming." She admitted, looking really nervous, and Gray couldn't bring himself to say no.

"I guess, sure." He shrugged.

"Yay!" She squealed.

Juvia was scary when she was swimming. She was so fast and so hyper. She swam in circles around him, beaming.

"Uh, Juvia?" He tried.

"Yes, Gray?" She asked happily.

"Could you maybe... Slow down a little?" He asked.

"Okay, Gray!" She chirped. "Juvia is sorry."

"No need to be sorry." He honestly wondered where Juvia came up with half the things she said.

"Wah! Gray is so nice." She had slowed by now, treading water next to him.

"Hey Juvia?"

"Yes, Gray?"

"Why do you talk in third person all the time?"

"J-Juvia... It is just one of Juvia's habits."

Gray raised an eyebrow. This wasn't the Juvia he knew. Something was up here.

"That's not it and you know it."

"Juvia is sorry. It is something she picked up before she joined Fairy Tail. It is how she was told to speak, so she did."

"Oh... Juvia, you know you don't need to do that anymore. We'll accept you no matter how you speak."

"That... That means a lot to Juvia. Thank you."

"So can you do me one favour? Speak in first person, just once. Please."

"Juvia... I'm glad you asked me to do that."

"Thank you, Juvia."

"I... Thank you, Gray."

The moment would've been all the more touching, if only they hadn't seen Mika on the beach taking pictures. Then passing them to Ultear, who was throwing them into the future when they'd be framed.

"Mika sure is dedicated." Juvia mumbled.

"Jeez, one of these days, she's gonna kill me." Gray groaned.

* * *

"So, _that's_ a ship." Mira explained happily. She had spent the entire last day explaining what a ship was, everything that could possibly be related to a ship. Laxus wasn't entirely sure that she stopped to breathe.

"I see. I think I get it..." Laxus nodded slowly.

"So, what's your OTP?" Mira asked egarly.

"What's an OTP again?" Laxus asked.

"Your favourite pairing." Mira said quickly, unwilling to go through the entire explanation again.

"Erm... Cobra and Kinana." He said quickly.

"Really! They're cute, but Natsu and Lucy are the best. Hey, do you think they're mates?" She asked suddenly.

"W-what? How do you even know about that?" Laxus spluttered.

"Natsu told me." She chirped.

"Of course he did." Laxus sighed.

"So do you?" She asked, blinking.

"I really don't know. Probably."

He could have sworn that Mira's scream broke the sound barrier. Scary woman.


	48. Chapter 48

The rest of the week had rushed by, and soon the Fairy Tail members were tearfully boarding the train. Seven of them even attempted to jump out the window on the ride back, but this was due to motion sickness.

"Lucy." Natsu gasped. "Kill me."

"No." She huffed, looking out the window. "Stop joking around."

"No..." There was a pause as he leaned out the window, leaving Lucy to cover her ears. "I mean, literally get your cow's axe and end it." He whimpered.

"Natsu his name is Taurus. And no. You'll be off soon enough." Lucy reassured him, starting to play with his hair once he was done vomiting.

"How... Long?" He croaked.

"Five hours." Erza announced, stepping into their compartment, closely followed by Jellal

"No!" Natsu wailed, flinging himself at the window.

"Natsu! You're going to fall out!" Lucy shrieked.

"That's... The... Point." He muttered.

"What's all this noise?" Zeref yelled, barging into their compartment. He sowly face palmed as he realised what his brother was trying to do. "Really, Natsu? I get that this isn't nice, but be a man and face it."

"Not a man. Dragon." Natsu insisted from where he was being dragged in by Erza, Zeref, Jellal and Lucy in her Taurus Star Dress form.

"Yeah, yeah. Your point? You can't jump out the window." Zeref sighed, banging his head on the wall.

"Whatever... Next thing, you're going to tell me you can't sleep in trees... Oh wait." Natsu said between groans. "I don't see why. There's nothing wrong with trees."

"Natsu." Zeref edged towards the doors. The window was open, which was good. He had only come in to check on his brother and let them know to be careful since they were about to speed up. Not to argue with Natsu over why trees weren't good houses. "We've been over this. Trees are not houses. They do not have running water, food storage or a roof, to name a few things."

"B-but..." Whatever Natsu was going to say was interrupted by his mad dash to the window. Zeref excused himself, sprinting for the compartment that he was sharing with Mavis. It wasn't that he didn't want to see his brother, it was just that the sound of him puking his guts out wasn't particularly pleasant.

As soon Zeref was out of earshot, Jellal turned to the whimpering dragon slayer. "I take it you haven't told him that you're building a tree house?"

* * *

"I'm dying." Gajeel groaned for the tenth time. In the space of a minute. Levy turned a page.

"That's nice." She said matter of factly.

"Nice... To know... How much you care." Gajeel was leaning out the window.

"I do care. I'm just reading a good book, and drowning out the noise of your continuous vomiting." She mumbled, eyes drawn to the page. "Besides, this happens every time. It'll be over before you know it."

"What... On earth... Is so... Damn good about that book." He managed, gasping for breath.

"SHUT UP! NO, DON'T DO IT... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO SHE DID IT!" Levy wailed, almost making Gajeel go deaf. In his opinion. In reality, her scream wasn't heard by anyone outside their compartment, due to the general chaos outside, caused by their partially insane guild.

"Ow. My eardrums! Jeez, Shrimp, can you tone it down a bit?" Gajeel snapped, motion sickness momentarily forgotten because of his anger.

"No..." Levy sobbed. She had put the book down and was crying into her hands. Gajeel put a shaking hand on her shoulder.

"What happened?" He choked out, shuffling towards the window.

"She... S-she died, in a river... And now she's dead!" Levy started crying into his shoulder. He didn't mind that much, but it really felt like his insides were being put in a blender. With gravel.

"That's sad, but she lived a good life." Gajeel was totally grasping at straws here, but he figured he should probably say something.

"Not at first. But at the end, yeah... A-and now she can never go back to it!" Gajeel was begining to lose feeling in his arm. The feeling was _not_ pleasant. At all.

"Yeah, but she... Uh, can be remembered as a wonderful person." He tried, finally getting closer to the window. He leaned his head out and...

"I-I suppose, but Gajeel! She's _dead_!" Levy started sobbing again. Then she started noticing something...

 _"Are you TRYING to jump out the window?"_

Gajeel gave her a look that spoke volumes.

"I'm sorry for being loud! Gajeel, don't leave me!" Lecy wailed.

"I can't. Dying here." Gajeel moaned. Unfortuantely, she was smart. Very smart. Gajeel found himself tied to his seat with a sickbag. Gajeel honestly felt like crying, but he'd never admit that... Ever. About thirty minutes later, after he had finally drifted off into a light sleep, drifting over his mind like silk curtains, somewhat soothing the awful feeling from the train.

"Gajeel! It was a happy ending after all!" She squealed, hugging the life out of him. He dimly wondered if he stood a chance at getting out the window again...

* * *

Wendy had realised on her first ever train ride that Natsu wasn't kidding about what trains were like. They were awful, shuddering, smelt weird and all in all, were just wrong. She would take flying with Grandeeney any day. She really missed the Sky Dragon Queen, but she couldn't afford to think about that. She had to defeat the worst enemy of them all: motion sickness.

There were no words left to describe how horrible she felt. The trees flashed past the narrow slits of windows, and in a way, it was so similar to flying. Except there wasn't the feel of the winds, the open air on her skin. This was cramped, stuffy and unnatural. It was at times like these, she could totally understand where the dragons who wanted to crush humans were coming from.

She raised a shaking hand and undid the lock holding the window shut. Yes... Just a little further, and she could escape. She leaned her head out the window, welcoming the familiar feeling of wind on her face. Then she promptly vomited.

Edging forwards, she soon had both her arms dangling out the window. So close... She could do this...

"Erm... What is Wendy doing?" Juvia asked hesitantly.

"Escaping." Wendy managed.

"Wendy, that is not allowed!" The water mage scolded, dragging Wendy, who was too weak to struggle, back into the compartment.

"B-But..." She moaned. "This is torture."

"No, don't worry. It will be over soon. Until then, you can sit with Juvia, Gray, Ultear and Mika." Juvia offered.

"I... Thank you." Wendy couldn't find the strength to argue.

"Why bring Wendy here?" Ultear questioned. "There's nothing wrong, it's just a little cramped, and that coupled with motion sickness..." She trailed off, leaving everyone to cringe.

Wendy staggered over to the window, proving Ultear correct in a matter of seconds.

Gray looked thoughtful. "Would ice help, maybe cool her down?"

"Possibly. Gray is so smart!" Juvia gushed. Ultear raised an eyebrow.

"Juvia, I've told you. You're far too good for Gray." She remarked teasingly.

"Sorry Wendy, since they're all busy to do this, you'll have to make do with my ice. Hope this helps." Mika whispered.

"T-Thanks." Wendy managed. The ice was rather soothing. It somewhat stopped the clenching of her stomach.

"No problem, kiddo." Mika grinned, ruffling her hair. Wendy guessed that she'd probably survive this train trip. But only this one.

* * *

Makarov didn't actually notice Laxus climbing out the window until it was nearly too late. He had found something... Interesting to read. Laxus was so close. He had so nearly escaped.

Needless to say, discovering that Laxus had motion sickness was a shock for Makarov. Laxus had seemed so strong, so different from the boy Makarov had knew, so when Laxus had promptly collapsed after setting foot on a train. Makarov had blinked. Then laughed, and laughed. Well, until Laxus had thrown up on him, that had rather wiped the smirk off his face.

He had soon become efficent at drowning out the unsettling sound effects of his Grandson's motion sickness. That concluded his pitiful defence at not noticing until it was almost too late...

Makarov frowned. He hadn't heard any vomiting noises in a while. It was far too quiet. He glanced up and saw why... Laxus was leaning out the window, nearly entirely free from the train.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU STUPID BOY?"

Laxus gave him the most offended face that someone who was half through a window and severely motion sick could muster. "What does... It look like, Old man." He groaned.

"ARE YOU _TRYING_ TO GET YOURSELF KILLED?" Makarov bellowed.

"Jumping... Won't kill me... Staying here will." Laxus grunted, again trying to get out the window.

"Of course it won't. You'll live." Makarov sighed.

"Speak... For yourself." Laxus muttered. Just a little further, and he would be free. Makarov rolled his eyes, using his titan magic to grab Laxus and put him back in his seat.

"There you go."

"I... Hate... You." Laxus snarled.

"The feeling's mutal." Makarov said cheerfully, going back to his magazine.


	49. Chapter 49

They had finally arrived at the guild hall. It had been kept in excellent shape. It turned out that Jason had kept some people there, which was rather nice of him. Everyone was exhausted from the long train ride back, so Mira was rather busy in the kitchens.

"Hey Luce." Natsu was sitting at a table with Lucy, Weny, Sting, Yukino, Rogue, Frosch and Happy.

"Yes Natsu." If Lucy knew what was going to happen next, she didn't show it.

"What's this?" He asked, holding up a bottle of something fizzy.

"That's a fizzy drink." Lucy smiled.

"Do they taste good?" Natsu asked egarly.

Lucy, only then seemed to catch on. "Only one way to find out. Have fun, Natsu!" She chirped. "Open, Gate of the clock, Horologium!"

"Lucy... No, what are you doing?" Happy cried. He activated his wings, lunging at the bottle, but it was too late. Natsu had already drained the entire thing. Rogue swore, grabbed Frosch and jumped into a shadow, reappearing on the second floor. Sting let a totally manly scream and clutched Yukino's hand, before leaping into the shadow after Rogue.

Several things happened at once in that second. Natsu grinned, going completely hyper, Happy wailed and ducked underneath a table. Then Zeref walked into the guild, hand in hand with Mavis, just as the chaos started.

All the tables were overturned in seconds, leaving Happy to scream and run for the kitchen, but Mira had heard the commotion, and decided to live up to her name of the She-Demon and had barred it off.

Zeref had sworn and ducked behind a pile of chairs, sheltering Mavis. "Who the hell gave Natsu a fizzy drink?" He bellowed.

Trembling, Happy jabbed a paw in the general direction of Lucy, who was sitting serenely in Horologium, and it appeared, doing a running commentary of the events.

"And Natsu has just smashed Max into a wall, and thrown a broom at him. Oh, he's used him as a springboard and had launched himself at Droy, throwing him into Gajeel- cool! She announces." Horologium stated. "Wait, Natsu, you missed Jet- he's there in a corner! She calls happily." Horologuim added.

"How can she even see that? It's happening so fast!" Zeref muttered.

"I think Lucy's lost it! Wah, now there are two Natsu's... WE'RE DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMED!" Happy wailed, flying in circles. Suddenly, a fish came flying out of no where and smashed him in the face. Happy took two seconds to recover and happily grabbed the fish, eyes sparkling.

"Ten points to Natsu! She cheers." Horologium chimed in.

"Lucy, what have you done?" Zeref called, looking worried.

"Mwahahahahahaha! She laughs insanely." Horologium reported sagely.

"Lucy! Did you do this?" Mavis asked, peeking out from behind Zeref's shoulder.

"Natsu! Your brother is in the corner! She yells evilly." Horologium started backing away. Soon, it became aparent why. Natsu was charging towards them with a bucket of magic paint, at full speed. Mavis yelped, sprinting as far away as she could, but Zeref wasn't so lucky... A few seconds later he was covered head to toe in flashing rainbow colours, looking _very_ unamused.

"Pretty." Mavis poked his cheek.

"This is getting out of hand." Zeref spat through gritted teeth.

Just then, Cobra entered the guild, looking for Kinana. He looked around, suddenly hearing the most horrific thing in his entire life. Someone was thinking incrediably quickly in an impossibly high pitch. 'Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!' Was all he managed to hear before he promptly fainted.

"Who can blame him?" Happy asked, pulling the poison dragon slayer behind a small cover.

"Zeref. She says in a falsely calm tone. Drink this." At this point, the spirit shoved a bottle of something fizzy into his hands.

"Hell no!" Zeref all but screamed, completely horrified.

"Don't make me call Natsu over here. She threatens cunningly." Unfortunately, Natsu seemed to hear his name over all the chaos that he had caused. He raced over, using any unsuspecting guild member as a springboard. (Gajeel swore vengance... Later... When there was nothing that could cause an apocolypse)

"Mine!" He cried, grabbing the bottle.

"No. Mine." Zeref hissed, not really wanting the drink, but wanting Natsu to get his hands on it even less.

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

"Mine!"

The tug of war eventually ended up with the bottle exploding everywhere. Now, Zeref was covered in luminous flashing paint, soot (everyone was, to be fair) and some horrible fizzy drink.

"Alright, what the hell!" Laxus thundered, coming down from the upper floor. He took one look around, at the general chaos, the somehow still standing bottle of whatever fizzy drink had caused the apocolypse, nodded and slammed his was back up to the second floor, sliding his headphones on and trying to forget about them. Wendy, for some reason was up there with Carla, both of them listening to something on a music lacrima and colouring, or in Carla's case, drinking tea. Sting and Rogue were also up there, having escaped earlier and were making paper cranes, with Frosch trying to balance each one on his nose.

"Why are almost all the dragon slayers up there?" Zeref cried in fustration. "We need their help!"

"This has happened before." Gajeel was suddenly standing next to them, standing awkwardly.

"WHAT?" Mavis squeaked. This was terrifying... To think that it had happened before.

"Salamander had some rare fire... Went absolutely nuts... We all had a day off. We learned the true meaning of fear that day." Gajeel shuddered.

"Right..." Zeref trailed off. Nobody was taking him seriously with all this paint, and he had honestly given up. "Why are you standing like that?"

"Oh." Gajeel shifted slightly, showing that he was sheltering a shaking Levy. "I don't want Shrimp to get squished, so I'm lookin' after her." He grunted.

"Spoken like a true gentleman." Zeref said sarcastically. A broom was chucked in their general direction... Followed by Max.

"I'm begining to think that he's targeting Max." Levy murmured.

"Wouldn't be suprised. He's easy to aim for." Gajeel shrugged, ignoring the dirty looks that everone, excluding Lucy, sent him.

Next came Ultear, Juvia, Gray and Mika, who had apparently gone for breakfast together before coming to the guild.

"What the fu-" Gray started, staring at the ruins the guild had quickly become.

"Gray!" Juvia scolded, ignoring Ultear laughing and Mika narrowing her eyes, trying to see what had caused it.

"Lucy's fault." Gajeel, Happy, Zeref, Mavis, Levy and Max all said at once.

"What happened?" Ultear was doing a terrible job at hiding her smirk.

"Lucy gave Natsu a fizzy drink. Now he's gone hyper." Happy told them quickly.

"Oh dear." Mika sighed. "Ice Make: Shield." She said lazily, waving a hand and creating a dome like shield to stop a table from flying into them.

"The idiot." Gray groaned. "I'm going to stop him!" He announced, making a door in the ice shield. He stormed out, smiling slightly at the sound of Juvia cheering.

"Go Gray! Gray can do it! Juvia believes in you!" She cried, eyes shining. Mika ruffled her hair.

"You know... We should probably reinforce this shield, with the explosions that are going to happen in their fight, it won't last long." Zeref muttered.

"I can do that!" Mavis beamed, waving her hands. Soon, their ice dome was surrounded by a golden glow.

"A watered down version of Fairy Sphere?" Zeref guessed.

"Yep, you remembered! Yay!" Mavis cheered, hugging Zeref tightly.

"Can't... Breathe." He gasped. Mavis frowned, then let him go, settling for skipping around the sphere instead.

"So... You guys used this before?" Ultear asked, looking for something, anything to talk about.

"Yeah, have you?" Happy piped up, finally finishing his fish.

"Yeah," Zeref scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "We used it as a tent. It was really useful, actually."

"Eh? When?" Happy asked. Zeref sighed.

"When Mavis and I completed the Infinity Quest, we uh..." Zeref shifted nervously.

"Oh, no, do tell us." Mika smirked, sensing amazing blackmail material approaching. Well, she already had some blackmail from the pictures of the rainbow coloured Zeref that she noticed Wendy was drawing.

"Erm... Our previous supplies were eaten... By a giant mole. We had gone to get firewood, and when we came back, there was this mole, about the size of the Guild Hall finishing off the last of our suplies. And we were just about to go and check out some ruins in the mountains." Zeref blurted.

The tale left two very unimpressed mages glaring at virtually everyone else in the shield laughing. Zeref suggested that they should kick them all out of the door of the guild, but Mavis didn't like that idea.

"Listen!" She gasped, snapping everyone out of their laughing fits.

"What the hell, Flame-Brain?" They heard Gray scream. This was followed by some very high pitched, very hyper and not entirely sane laughter.

Then, they heard it as clear as day, the words that nearly every member had been waiting to hear.

"I'm sorry, Miss Lucy, but my time is up!" Horologium said sadly.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Lucy wailed. She was suddenly stranded in the middle of a battlefield.

Natsu saw her, grinned, grabbed her and literally disappeared in a cloud of dust. By the sounds of things, he jumped out a window, dragging Lucy with him... Every member listened happily as Lucy's screams faded into the distance.

"That," Zeref sighed, smiling. "was the most beautiful example of karma I have ever seen."


	50. Chapter 50

"You know," Cana said to Mavis the day after the total destruction of the Guild Hall and the day that fizzy drinks were removed from the bar's menu. "I'm amazed that Ultear managed to fiz the entire building before Erza found out."

"Yes." Mavis agreed. "That was very impressive."

"Yeah... Wonder what Master's reaction was?" Cana sipped her definately non-alcoholic drink.

"Yeah... I really want to know now." Mavis giggled. Little did they know the absolute mental breakdown Makarov had had the day before.

* * *

(Flashback)

"What's going on down there, that's a lot of noise..." Makarov muttered, looking at one of the newly installed camera lacrimas. There was a table blocking its view. Just great. Sighing, he set the recording back to several minutes earlier, wondering how a _table_ had got there in the first place.

There was a short moment of static. He felt his heart stop as he saw Natsu, Lucy, Weny, Sting, Yukino, Rogue, Frosch and Happy all sitting at a table. This spelled disaster already...

"No... No, please, no!" He could see where this was going, even now. Lucy handed Natsu a fizzy drink... Everyone near him was already scared. Makarov started banging his head on his desk. Please let him wake up and find that this was all a terrible, terrible dream and most certainly not happening. He looked up in time to see Natsu completely hyper, Lucy laughing insanely inside her clock spirit, Zeref acting like Mavis' bodygaurd, which reminded him that he had to find out what happened with him trying to kill her. It had been barely a minute and he already needed a drink. Badly.

Well, surely it was worth the laugh he got from seeing Zeref covered head to toe in rainbow paint, right? Not really, as not two seconds after that, Jet was used to take out a light, Max's mop to take out a window and Warren made a hole in the ceilling... Speaking of which, Makarov heard a loud scream getting closer and closer, until Warren was blasted through the floor of his office and ended up making another hole in the roof. Great. This was going to cost so much to repair. Not to mention the complaints. He was fairly sure that Warren would land near the Magic Council's massive grounds. This reminded him that the Magic Council was already annoyed at him, to put it mildly, because he had refused them an audience with the Dragon Slayers. Honestly, he felt he had every right to protect them from this. They were only kids, and had already been through so, so much. They didn't need this, and he intended to keep the Magic Council away from them. For as long as he could, anyway. They'd probably come up with a way to try and talk them in to working for them. Probably arresting them or something.

Within the next thirty seconds, he concluded that Lucy was insane, going to kill them and started flipping through his lists of contacts for a therapist...

With a thump that he managed to hear over all the screaming, explosions and laughter, the camera went static as Max's broom speared it. Well, wasn't that great. Makarov's hopes began to rise as he saw his Grandson come charging into the scene... Only to retreat. No... Not him too! Makarov retreated into a corner, reching for whatever drink he kept there, not even daring to look at the screen.

(Flashback over)

He still hadn't come out of his corner.

* * *

"So, I do wonder what the S-Class trials will be like." Mavis said, smiling.

"Can we not talk about that?" Cana asked quickly.

"I guess. But still, you've totally got this!" Mavis cheered, but it didn't seem to cheer Cana up that much.

"Nevermind, it could be worse!" Mavis tried to cheer up the Card Mage.

A loud, shrill alarm sounded. It made most of the guild start screaming, jumping up and down and laughing.

"You know, you were right. It is worse." Cana sighed, looking for a table to hide over. She managed to get lost in the crowd.

"Why's everyone screaming?" Lucy asked. She seemed so normal, it was like the previous day never happened. Natsu was his usual cheerful self as well, creeping everyone out.

"Gildarts is back!" Gray told them, grinning.

"Who's Gildarts?" Juvia, all of Jellal's old guild, Lucy, Yukino and the Dragon Slayers asked.

"Our old strongest male member." Lisanna told them. She was hugging Frosch, who seemed to be playing with her hair.

"What do you mean 'old strongest male member'?" Carla asked, narrowing her eyes at the vauge explanation.

"Well, Mavis was always stronger than him, and a lot of the new members could probably give him a run for his money." She shrugged.

"Fro thinks so too!" The Exceed cheered.

The new members backed uncertainly into a corner, not sure what to expect...

* * *

"I'm back!" GIldarts announced as he stepped into the Guild Hall.

"Welcome back!" Everyone chorused.

"Am I the only one thinking that he smells familiar?" Gajeel asked lowly.

"No, you're right, he does. Have we seen him before?" Cobra hissed back.

"I have." Zeref started shuffling behind them.

"So Gildarts, how did your mission go? Wait, what was it again?" Mira asked sweetly, faltering at the end.

"I had to sneak into the battlefields of the Dragon Civil War and report on how things were going. Took me a while, since I ran into the Black Mage, Zeref." He shrugged. "Got there in the end, though."

"The Dragon Civil War and Zeref, huh. Quite an adventure, say, did you run into the Dragon Slayers at all?" Mira asked, pouring Gildarts a drink.

"Erm, yeah, actually... I ran into a group of them, they were bringing down one of the things. Then one of them saw me... I got out of there as fast as I could, they looked scary. Covered in blood... Almost as bad as Zeref." The entire guild went silent at that. There was a long pause, with no one moving then...

There was a loud slapping noise as Zeref and Natsu high fived.

"Oops?" Natsu laughed sheepishly.

"New members, cool!" Gildarts beamed, apparently not recognising them. Zeref was now hiding behind Laxus. The rest of the guild nearly fell over at his stupidity.

"How about you all introduce yourself one at a time?" Gildarts asked.

"I'm Jellal!"

"I'm Angel."

"I'm Ultear"

...

* * *

By the end of the long list of names, no one had noticed that Zeref had joined Cana under the table. She didn't seem to mind, he wasn't taking her alcohol or annoying her, so it really didn't matter.

"Huh." Gildarts looked thoughrful. "I think I've seen the seven of you before somewhere... Can I ask what magic you use?"

"No." Gajeel grunted. Laxus didn't even look at the Iron Dragon Slayer as he slapped him on the back of the head.

"Moron. He'll find out sooner or later." Laxus rolled his eyes.

"Find out what?" Gildarts was completely confused. This was when Levy and Reedus decided to help out.

"Solid Script: Red Paint!"

"Picto Magic: Smoke!" **(A/N Sorry, I really can't remember how this magic works ^-^)**

Gildarts stared. It was almost like he was back in that day. The Dragon Civil war had honestly been one of the most terrifying things he had ever seen, and he had only been there for about a month at the max. He still had nightmares about the smoke, the deafening roars and figures striding out of the thick, coiling shadows. But what had haunted him the most was the one, fleeting glimpse of the Dragon Slayer's eyes. They were so dull and empty. It was like they had never seen love before, had no happy memories. No child should ever have to look like that.

But now here they were, with that light back in their eyes. They had come to a guild where they had learned the meaning of love. They never had to look so empty again, and that meant a lot to him. He hated how his wife had left him before they could have children, he regretted that everyday, eventually coming to have a soft spot for childeren. So, seeing the seven children whole once more meant the world to him. Nothing could ruin his happy mood.

(He clearly didn't know about Zeref yet)


	51. Chapter 51

"Anyone know when the S-Class exam is?" Gray asked anyone who would listen.

"Gray." Mira said sweetly, eyes like steel. "For the _last_ time, no. It is up to Makarov."

Gray gulped. "Where even is Gramps? I haven't seen him since before the disaster."

Mira paused, looking thoughtful. "Give me a moment." She turned around, heading up the stairs. A few moments later, she came running back down, looking horrified.

"Urgh. His office is _covered_ in beer bottles!" She screeched. "It smells _awful_!"

"Master's drunk?" Gildarts asked.

"Yes." Mira spat, diving under the bar in search of a bin bag.

"Wonder why he's all worked up now." Gildarts snorted, grabbing the drink Kinana had just poured him.

"Probably what Natsu did a couple of days ago. Then again, it wasn't really his fault." Cobra shrugged.

"What'd he do?" Gildarts asked.

"Went completely hyper and trashed the place." Cobra returned to his drink, shuddering.

"Really? It doesn't look very trashed." Gildarts stared at the ceilling where, unknown to him, Max had been punched through the day before.

"We have a mage who can use Arc of Time magic. She is exceptionally skilled, so the damage was fixed rather quickly." Erza had got over her inital rage at her discovery of how the guild hall had been ruined.

"Well... You'd better ask Ultear." Meredy told him, coming up to the bar. "She'd know the most about her magic after all."

"Fair enough." Gildarts shrugged. Just then, there was a loud rumble, and there was a dull roaring noise outside. "Oh great. It's raining. Nothing interesting ever happens when it's raining."

* * *

Meanwhile...

Gildarts was proven very wrong in that moment, as Mavis, Lucy, Natsu and Zeref had teamed up in a desperate attempt to pay Lucy's rent. (And for Zeref to get away from Gildarts, but he hoped that they didn't know that (they did, and found it incrediably funny, they just didn't laugh where he could see them.))

"Bro! Stop staring at Mavis and help us!" Natsu bellowed.

"Huh, what?" Zeref asked, tearing his eyes from Mavis, who was gearing up to use Fairy Glitter. He liked watching her fight. She looked cool. Really cool...

"ZEREF!" Natsu yelled. They had been cornered on top of a hill, and they had a charming view of how surrounded they were. Honestly, there were so many monsters that they couldn't see the ground... But Mavis looked so cool...

"That's it, I'm going into Dragon Force!" Natsu roared.

"Natsu, be careful!" Lucy yelled. She was in her Leo Star Dres...

"I will Luce! I'm going to make my idiot brother useful even if it kills me." He shouted.

"I literally just told you to be careful!" She scolded, not having the chance to glare at him as she was attempting to hold off three monsters at once.

Zeref was staring as Mavis destroyed ten monsters at once with her Fairy Glitter spell. She hadn't noticed him staring, yet. Zeref yelped as he was picked up and flung towards a large group of particually ugly monsters. Almost imeddiately, more monsters closed in, blocking his view of Mavis. It didn't help that he could hear Natsu and Lucy high fiving. How they had time to do that, he would never know, as one of the monsters tried to slash downwards onto his head with one of its sword-like arms. The other five were focused on his rib cage and legs.

He soon found himself being very useful indeed.

"Guys, back up, I'm going to use Fairy Sphere!" Mavis called. Zeref sighed, knowing his eyes had probably turned red, and promptly blasted his way to the top of the hill.

"Fairy Sphere!" Mavis called, creating a massive golden sphere. The monsters seemed to take this as a challenge, and started trying to break the shield by whatever means they had. It was not a nice sight.

"So," Lucy asked egarly. "Is this where we come up with an amazing plan and take out all of these things with one attack each?"

"No," Mavis shook her head, digging in her bag for a lacrima. "this is where we ask permission to alter the landscape a little."

"What, why would we- Oh, so they can't sue the guild when we destroy the hill." Zeref realised.

"And most of the forest." Natsu added helpfully.

Mavis shot them a glare that rivalled Erza's as she started the call with their client, the Town Mayor. His face appeared in the orb she was holding, he looked very old and tired. Mayors normally did, especially the ones that sued the guild a lot.

"Hello." She said sweetly. "Sorry to bother you, but we're having a bit of trouble."

"Yes." The man nodded, "I just recieved a report from one of our sentries. It looks like all of the monsters are out there. That shield is a marvellous piece of magic, I commend whoever created it."

"Thank you." Mavis smiled. "You see, the fight might be a bit destructive..." She trailed off, looking appropriately regretful. He seemed to buy it. Lucy was covering Natsu's mouth to stop him laughing.

"No, I understand. I will not sue anyone for any damage you cause to the surrounding area, providing that my town is not harmed. I hope to see all of you alive when you return to the town." He nodded gravely. "Is that all?"

"Yes, thank you." Mavis said politely. The second the call was disconnected, she turned to them. "We're destroying the hill."

"YAY!" The other three cheered. Yes, even Lucy and Zeref. Fairy Tail was really rubbing off on them...

Zeref unleashed one of his most powerful, non leathal spells, Natsu seemed to have a continuous stream of fire going and Lucy was managing to duel weild with a whip. Then Mavis was utterly terrifying, using spells Zeref was fairly sure he had never seen before.

They had already cut through about a fourth of the monsters when Natsu got impatient and fought his way over to Lucy, yelling something Zeref couldn't hear. Appatrently, things weren't going fast enough for him. Somehow, after much fighting side by side, in which Zeref admired their teamwork and cursed that he was no where near Mavis, Lucy ended up agreeing with Natsu. After he threw a massive monster into a group of them, crushing three of them, he got a good look at what they were doing. From a distance, it would look like they were holding hands whilst hugging, but from here Zeref could see that they had their eyes closed. They were both strong and familiar with battle, so there was no way that they were pausing, they wouldn't make such a fatal mistake. No, what they were doing was something Zeref had rarely seen. They were attempting a Unison Raid. By the looks of things, it was going to work. Swearing, he unleashed a wave of death magic, sprinting towards Mavis. She, too, had seen what was about to happen and already had Fairy Sphere at the ready. God, he loved that girl. They may or may not have been kissing the entire time that Natsu and Lucy were finishing off the monsters, but that was no one else's buisness, was it?

* * *

By the end of all of it, they had destroyed the hill.

The strangest thing was that they got paid for it.

"Thank you for destroying the hill." The Mayor said as he shook each of their hands, giving them double the amount of money that he had origionally promised.

"Excuse me, but why are you paying us for destroying the hill?" Zeref asked, completely confued.

"Well, we wanted to expand our humble town, and the hill was really getting in the way. So thank you, you have done our town a great service. I shall inform you Guild Master of your good deeds." The Mayor told them formally, before vanishing back to his office, egar to complete his paper work.

"Did we actually..." Zeref started, eyes wide.

"Get a full reward with an extra bonus." Natsu continued.

"FOR DESTROYING SOMETHING?" They both yelled, making Lucy and Mavis roll their eyes.

"Well, miracles can happen after all?" Lucy offered weakly.

* * *

The Master seemed to think so too, after he got the letter of thanks from the Mayor. Only he took it incrediably well, and took it as motivation to actually start planning the S Class trials.

Gildarts, however, never realised how badly wrong he was and had spent the entire day moping around, being bored. Cana spent the entire day drowning her sorrows, and Cobra sorely wished that she wasn't so busy topping everyone up. Seriously, what was he supposed to do? Well, he could listen to Zeref's mental gloating over how he had got revenge over the whole rainbow paint incident, but that was boring after about ten seconds.


	52. Chapter 52

Zeref was soon introduced to Gildarts by the name he was called in public, Spriggan. He also started wearing hooded cloaks that hid his face. A bet had started over when Gildarts would find out, and even Lucy's spirits had taken to summoning themselves and adding to the bets.

Natsu was getting to the point where he was ready to burn his brother's cloak off, just to speed things up. Makarov found the entire thing funny, well at least at first. Now he was getting anoyed and his patience was wearing thin.

"Can Spriggan and Gildarts come to my office." Makarov called over the new speaker system. This was so not going to go well, and the Master knew it. "Natsu, can you stop your brother... Thank you! Carry him to my office please."

"Natsu, you traitor!" Zeref screamed, literally trying to kick his way out. Natsu started humming a random song he had heard on a music lacrima.

And that was how Zeref found himself sitting next to Gildarts, glaring at Makarov.

"What's all this about?" Gildarts asked tiredly.

"I need to know more about your encounter with Zeref. Spriggan here has... A past with him, and deserves to know." Makarov said carefully. From the glare he sent him, Zeref guessed that he could see the hand gesture he had made under the table at the old man.

Good, he deserved it.

"Well, I was about to head off to the grounds of the Dragon Civil War, and..."

* * *

 _(Flashback)_

 _Gildarts sighed as he walked through the strangely dead area. The trees were bare, despite it being rather warm. The skeletal branches snagged on his cloak before snapping, dry and brittle. It was really annoying..._

 _He finally came across a clearing, and mostly greatful for the lack of trees, he stumbled into it._

 _"Leave." The voice was barely more than a whisper, yet Gildarts heard it loud and clear, it was so silent, so eerily quiet, that the words seemed so unbelievably loud._

 _"Who are you?" Gildarts asked in suprise. He hadn't noticed the boy before, he had been sitting huddled by himself, looking small and alone, rocking backwards and forwards._

 _"No one. A phantom." They answered. Now that he was closer, Gildarts could see how pale the boy was._

 _"You're quite clearly solid. Not a phantom, Kid. Now, who are you?" He asked, already tense. Whoever this kid was, they were dangerous._

 _"You want to know, Old Man?" They asked, turning to stare. Gildarts frowned. His eyes were a bright, unsettling shade of red._

 _"I'm not old, and yes. That would be why I asked." Gildarts fought to keep his fear out of his voice._

 _The boy stood, glaring at him. "My name is Zeref."_

 _Gildarts felt like he had gone numb. The great dark mage was a mere boy? A poor boy with red eyes that didn't seem to belong to him._

 _"What?" Was all he could say._

 _The boy raised an eyebrow and stared at him flatly. "Please tell me that you've heard the rumours about everything that I've done. It makes things so much easier."_

 _"You. You can't be Zeref." Gildarts said, narrowing his eyes._

 _"Oh really? You sound like you're just begging for a demonstration." Zeref challenged with a slight smirk. Gildarts started cursing mentally. How had he managed to get himself into this again? Oh yeah, him and his big mouth._

 _He was so busy unleashing his colourful vocabulary, that he didn't notice the wave of pure death magic that was hurtling towards his face. He barely managed to shatter it with his Crash Magic._

 _"Interesting." Zeref said thoughtfully. Gildarts watched the already withering blades of grass shrivel and blacken as the death magic touched them. Eyes darkening, already serious, he readied his crash magic and..._

 _(Flashback over)_

* * *

"That's enough." Makarov said quickly. This was partly due to how he understood sign language and knew exactly what Zeref had been saying. Seriously, someone needed to wash out that kid's mouth with soap. Well, in this case, his hands, because it was sign language...

"Right, sorry." Gildarts scratched the back of his head. "Did that help?"

"Not really. It made everything more complicated, actually." The Master admitted. "You know what, this is getting ridiculous." And with that, he used his Titan Magic faster than either of them could see, grabbing Zeref's cloak. There was a long pause. Gildarts stared at Zeref. There were some noticable differences. He wasn't so pale, he seemed happier now. Lastly, his eyes were no longer red, but a warm black.

"Why are you here?" Gildarts hissed. Zeref stared at him, apparently at a loss for words. Finally, he spoke.

"Same reason as you." Zeref said quietly, showing the older man his guild mark.

"W-What? You joined the guild? How?" He demanded.

"Well, there was more of a story than you know." Zeref said, a hint of coldness creeping into his voice. "No one seems to realise that."

"Well," Makarov shrugged. "You can't blame us."

"Was this your plan? Get me here to tell you my life story, 'cause I accidently tried to kill Mavis?" Zeref asked scathingly. Neither Makarov or Gildarts replied to that. Zeref started swearing, carrying on for several minutes. Gildarts looked at him in awe.

"How do you know so many curses?" He wondered.

Zeref shrugged. "I grew up in _dark guilds_. What did you expect to happen?" He remarked casually.

Makarov and Gildarts exchanged looks of horror.

* * *

"S-So sad!" Gildarts wailed into a tissue.

"I'm sorry for judging you." Makarov sniffed, slapping Zeref on the shoulder.

"Erm, okay?" Zeref had told his story in the most basic form possible. Awkwardly and stiffly, he had explained everything from his parent's untimely deaths to finishing the Infinity Quest. It had been a long story, and it had taken about three hours to tell them.

"You know," Gildarts muttered. "I kinda hate Happy now."

"I can see where you're coming from, I guess." Makarov agreed.

"I don't." Zeref said quietly, but was ignored.

"I mean, just leaving like that, poor Zeref." Gildarts wailed, reaching for the bottle of something alcoholic that Makarov kept on his desk.

"I'm right here!" Zeref protested. Neither Makarov or Gildarts seemed to hear him. They were too busy fighting over the bottle of alcohol. Zeref was getting annoyed, they were _very_ loud. In fact, they were so busy, they didn't notice him firing a bolt of drak magic straight at the bottle. opps? They didn't even realise it was him, immediately blaming each other.

Zeref coughed politely. Nothing happened. He tried again. And again. And again.

He finally snapped and had a full on coughing fit. This eventually jolted the men out of their argument.

"NO ZEREF, DON'T DIE!"

* * *

"Right, so, after much discussion." Makarov began grandly, but he was rudely interrupted.

"Excuse me Master," Mira said sweetly. "But next to no conversation went into this at all."

All the current S-Class mages and Zeref were gathered in Makarov's office.

"Okay, with a shamefully low amount of discussion, we have decided to promote you to a S-Class wizard without the trials." The Master snapped, turning to smile at Zeref.

It took a moment for this to sink in. Then Zeref did something very few people had ever seen him do before. He grinned.


	53. Chapter 53

**A/N Sorry, this is mostly a filler. Enjoy =)**

It soon became apparent that the S-Class trials weren't going to happen any time soon. For one thing, no one could agree on what they wanted to happen.

Gildarts wanted a traditional good old brawl style test. Preferably with beer for the people watching. Erza wanted an obstacle course, with plenty of transport. Then there was Mavis, who didn't really care and was stuck doing all the paperwork, so she was rarely seen or heard of, which annoyed Zeref greatly.

This particular morning Zeref was in a heated argument with Mira over, yet again, what the S-Class trials should be like.

"They should be a test of love, the bonds between partners and the final shove into making couples run into each other's arms!" Mira snarled, slamming her hands down on the bar.

"That's not what S-Class stands for at all." Zeref protested, narrowing his eyes.

"Hey," A loud voice interrupted them. "Don't joke about the ships."

Zeref turned around, completely horrified and met Laxus' gaze.

"What the hell?" He yelped. "There is no way that you are like her!" Zeref pointed angrily at Mira, who was smirking evilly.

Laxus glared at him, before turning to ask Mira what a crack pairing was. Zeref groaned and burried his face in his arms. The world was doomed.

* * *

Gajeel was incrediably tired of Jet and Droy, but he tolerated them, which was more than they did to him. Sadly, they were taking a train to their job, so he wasn't in a good position to defend himself. Thankfully, Levy was more than willing to stand up for her friend.

"Why is _he_ here?" Jet asked with thinly veiled disgust.

"Because," Levy huffed. "I want him here. Problem?" She growled out. It seemed that she had become sick of her friend's actions.

"No, it's just that..." Droy trailed off, unsure how to say his opinion without offending his friend.

"Just what?" Levy asked coldly. Her friends had been driving her up the wall recently. She knew they had been picking on Gajeel a lot, and she wouldn't stand for it.

"Look, he's not even a part of our team." Jet spat.

"Yes he is!" Levy exploded. "How can you say that?"

"I-I..." Jet seemed to be suprised by her outburst and finally shut up, letting the rest of the train ride pass in an uneasy silence, only broken by the sound of Gajeel puking.

* * *

"Say, Rogue, have you noticed that we're the only ones working on the house today?" Sting asked absently, as they gazed up at the nearly complete treehouse. Well, the word tree house didn't exactly do it justice. It was arranged around four trees, with a fifth tree providing a sort of centre.

"Yeah, I've noticed all right." Rogue complained. He had just finished carrying a massive stack of wood over to the ladder.

"Fro thinks so too!" The Exceed piped up from where he sat under a tree.

"See, Fro knows. He knows all!" Sting yelled. Unfortunately, Yukino chose that exact moment to walk into the clearing, Angel following, looking thrilled.

"Your intelligence never ceases to amaze me." The former dark wizard sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Why are you here?" Sting asked, glaring at her.

"'Cause Yuki wanted to come here." She snapped.

"Yukino's fine. It's you I have the problem with." Sting growled.

"Uh, guys?" Yukino started timidly. She honestly didn't expect a reaction from either of them, so she squeaked in suprise when both of them turned to look at her.

"Yeah, Yuki?"

"What is it Yukino?"

"I-I just... Why are you fighting?" She asked in a small voice.

"'Cause I hate him!"

"Because I hate her!"

"Sting?" Rogue said slowly. "Is there something you should be telling us?"

"Yeah, Angel, is there something you're not telling me?" Yukino asked. There was a long silence, in which Sting and Angel when red, then green, then really pale, then blue and then...

"Wow, pretty!" Frosch cheered, looking at the purple faces of the Dragon Slayer and Celestial Mage.

"Who knew faces could go that colour." Rogue commented, earning a glare.

"Do you think they even heard our questions?" Yukino asked.

"Let's ask again." Rogue smirked. "Do you two have someth-"

"NO!"

* * *

Makarov goraned. There was a massive stack of paperwork on his desk. Only half of it was from the magic council.

"Why haven't they given their plans for the trials to Mavis?" He muttered, quickly becoming irritated. "STUPID BRATS!" He wailed, slamming his head onto his desk.

"Actually, Master, I put them there." Mavis interupted softly. She had large bags under her eyes and was horribly pale. Makarov immediately felt bad.

"Sorry for making you do that, Mavis." He sighed. "Are these the final plans?"

"Yes," She nodded tiredly. "I included a little of what everyone wanted. And I had to make it into teams, since there are so many people you chose to compete."

"Sorry, we just have so many new members that are so powerful and loyal." He groaned, rubbing his temples.

"Yes, so many people joining our guild." Mavis said in a small voice. Then she smiled. "That sure points towards a bright future."

"Yes, yes it does." He smiled.

"So," She yawned. "Can I leave you to deal with the paperwork? Good." She sprinted away from his office, no doubt ready to sleep. Well, he couldn't really complain, as it was his fault that she was that tired. He could deal with this.

His pen had barely touched the paper when the door was knocked down.

"I heard that we're doing teams!" Mira squealed. "Who's going with who? Are there ships involved?"

"I, what-"

"Tell me, I need to know!" She yelled.

"I haven't even decided who's going in which team yet." He groaned.

"Oh, can I do it?" She chirped, going from an insane demon to an innocent girl in a matter of seconds.

"Go right ahead." Maybe he couldn't deal with this after all.


	54. Chapter 54

**A/N I'm really sorry, but this chapter is mostly a filler and not much happens, other than a really long list. Hopefully, the next couple of chapters should be better as well as longer. As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail and I never will. Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"Listen up, brats!" Makarov bellowed. The S Class mages stood on the stage behind him, trying to look serious, and in Mavis' case, giggling uncontrolably. Everyone burst into mutters at what this could be about. None of them had done something seriously bad, so he couldn't be annoyed, could he?

"Yeah, we're quiet." Gajeel snapped. He had been a bad mood since him and the rest of Team Shadow Gear came back from their mission. It wasn't hard to guess why, considering the smug looks on Jet and Droy's faces. Love can bring out the worst in people, yet it can also bring out the best in them.

"Well, technically, he just said something, so you're not." Gildarts pointed out, earning him a death glare from Erza.

"Alright, alright, just listen." Makarov groaned. Everyone glared at him a pointed silence.

"Okay, then. Among ourselves, the current S Class mages have planned the S Class trials. The selected mages are as follows."

"Natsu Dragneel."

"I'm fired up now!"

"Lucy Heartfilia."

"Me... Really?"

"Hah, I knew you could do it Luce!"

"Gray Fullbuster."

"Finally."

"Be polite." Mika snapped.

"Juvia knew you could do it, Gray-sama!"

"Juiva Loxar."

"J-Juvia... Juvia is suprised..."

"Have a little more faith in yourself- hey, stop taking pictures!"

"Mika Fullbuster."

"Hey, this is cool! Gray, I'm not going easy on you."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

"Ultear Milkovich."

"What a _pleasant_ suprise."

"Ultear, you're scaring me."

"Ultear, you're doing that evil face again."

"Am I? Oh dear."

"Jellal Fernandes."

"WHY HAVE YOU GONE PALE?"

"I-I might have to fight Erza!"

"PULL IT TOGETHER, YOU BIG BABY!"

"Ow!"

"Meredy Milkovich."

"Wow, that's cool I guess. Who should I target first?"

"And you say I'm scary..."

"Wendy Marvel."

"M-me? I-I'll do my best."

"Be more confident child, you'll be fine."

"Sting Eucliffe."

"YES!"

"You look like an idiot."

"He _is_ an idiot."

"I heard that!"

"Good."

"Rogue Cheney."

"Why isn't he saying anything?"

"Because I'm not going to do any over-exagerrated screaming like the rest of you."

"Emo."

"Sting, I will stop at nothing to ensure your defeat in the exam."

"Double emo."

"ENOUGH! Yukino Aguria."

"Me, oh..."

"She fainted from the shock."

"Gerat obstervation skills there, Eucliffe."

"No one asked you, Agnel. You haven't even been chosen."

"Sorano Aguria."

"Pfft, your name is Sorano."

"Dammit."

"Laxus Dreyar."

"Took you long enough, old man."

Laxus ignored the glare he recieved for that.

"Laxus-sama!"

"Erik."

"Cool." It wasn't a suprise, he had heard it coming. In fact, he knew everyone who was selected, and the teams already. He wasn't going to ruin it though. That would spoil the fun.

"Gajeel Redfox."

"Gihi."

"Yay! You made it!"

"Well done, Gajeel."

"Metal head did it!"

"Shut up, Salamander!"

"Levy McGarden."

"M-me, of all people?"

"See, Shrimp, you did it!"

"WELL DONE LEVY-CHAN!"

"Elfman Strauss."

"BECOMING S-CLASS IS REALLY MANLY."

"SHUT UP!"

"No need to be so rude, Ever."

"Hmph."

"They're in _looooooove_."

"SHUT UP!"

"Lisanna Strauss."

"I need to start training right away."

"Relax, you're plenty strong as it is."

"Cana Alberona."

"Told you!"

"Mavis, you're not supposed to speak!"

"Oops."

"Kinana."

"Can she even use magic?"

"Yes, I can."

"And she's very scary with it."

"Aww, thank you Erik."

"Mest Gryder."

"Cheers."

"What magic does he use again."

"Don't know."

"Odd..."

"Jet."

"Yes, now I can become S-Class and impress Levy-chan."

"You know you said that out loud, right."

"Oops."

"Droy."

"Yes! Now I can become S-Class, defeat Jet and Gajeel and impress Levy-chan!"

"They're scarily similar."

"That's all... Other than the groups, but they've already been asigned."

Everyone relaxed. Master wasn't too bad, so the groups weren't going to be terrible.

"By Mira." Makarov stepped aside to reveal a smirking Mira.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

This was horrible, the absolute worst. There was no telling what Mira could've done. Knowing her, the teams were all awkward love triangles, or she'd have two people who did care about each other fight. Not to mention that she'd probably then film it, and use it as blackmail.

"And one more thing." The Master said stiffly. "REMIND ME TO ADD BEING QUIET TO THE TRAILS, AS YOU'D ALL CLEARLY FAIL!"


	55. Chapter 55

The Master sighed. The Guild Hall had become rather quiet in the last couple of days. The groups, some of them unhappy with the evil Mira had created, had set off (however unwilingly) to go and train together for the upcoming tests. While at first, the silence had been much appreciated, Makarov soon realised something horrible. Without his brats, things were boring.

"Oh well," He sighed, reaching for his drink. "Things will be interesting soon enough, heh, those brats don't know what's in store for them."

The other S-Class mages, who had stayed behind and enjoying how quiet everything was, smirked evily. They did know what was going to happen, after all.

* * *

Group 1: Gajeel, Levy, Natsu and Lucy.

"Things couldn't have been better for us!" Natsu cheered.

"For once, I agree." Gajeel said, nodding, causing Levy and Lucy to almost faint with shock.

"You never agree." Lucy said, going shrill. "Who are you and what have you done with Gajeel and Natsu?"

"Yeah, and how is this good?" Levy demanded. "You two hate each other!"

"That's true." Gajeel smirked. "But the thing is, you forget that we used to fight alongside one another against the dragons."

"Without arguing. At all?" Levy asked skeptically.

"Of course not. Iron Head couldn't understand that I was better than him, so we made it a sort of contest. I always won though, but he was an idiot and never stopped trying."

"The hell you're better than me!" Gajeel exploded, punching Natsu.

"You're just proving our point!" Levy and Lucy yelled at the exact same time.

Gajeel and Natsu froze mid-fight. "S-scary..."

"So, we need to learn to work as a team, and to get a lot stronger." Lucy concluded. The other three members of their team started clapping, though Levy had to elbow Gajeel in the ribs. They had gathered around a campfire, after deciding to do training in pairs. Lucy and Levy had practiced together, giving Natsu and Gajeel a chance to... improve... their teamwork.

"Well, we might not need to get that much stronger. How about we train as a group tomorrow, so we can see where we need to improve." Gajeel suggested.

There was a long pause.

"I think that was the first time Gajeel has ever said anything smart." Lucy gasped.

"He's not _that_ dumb." Levy argued. "Just plain old dumb."

Natsu just laughed.

"SHUT UP SALAMANDER, IT AIN'T THAT FUNNY!"

* * *

"So... How are we going to do this?" Levy asked. "Would it be better to practice attacks and possible combinations, or should we learn from experience and fight monsters?" She murmured, weighing up the options.

"This is boring, can we just skip to the fighting?" Natsu complained.

"No, this is important." Lucy snapped, slapping him on the back of his head lightly.

"Sorry Luce." He muttered.

"Wow, you're a big softie to your girlfriend, aren't you Salamander?" Gajeel jeered.

"Hey, at least I can admit my feelings to a girl, too bad you're such a wimp." Natsu shot back.

"Both of you, shut up." Lucy snapped without looking at them. "Why don't we try both methods, and see what works best?"

"That's a great idea, how about the fighting monsters today, otherwise they might be scared off by our attacks!" Levy beamed.

"Do you have any idea what any of that was about?" Gajeel asked. Natsu shook his head.

"Figures." He grumbled.

* * *

"See, couldn't we've started with this?" Natsu yelled. It was the next morning, and they had tried Levy's idea. He was taking down monster after monster, working suprisingly well with Gajeel. Then, of course, he also worked very well with Lucy, they were team mates (and something more) after all. Then Gajeel would also fight very well with Levy, as they also used to fight on the same team.

Soon, Natsu found himself fighting next to Levy. He wasn't used to her long ranged attacks, or the way she would edit the terrain with traps. It ended with a very unimpressed Natsu hanging upside down in a net, completely drenched.

"I'm sorry!" Levy was completely mortified.

"No problem." Natsu's voice was muffled by the net.

Gajeel would've laughed at them, except when he had to fight alonside Lucy, things didn't go much better. He was fine by himself, but Lucy sent one of her spirits over to help, while she took down monsters with her whip.

Somehow, the spirit, Gajeel didn't remember his name, ended up getting caught in one of his attacks.

"Capricorn!" Lucy screamed, rushing over, leaving the monster to be caught in one of Natsu's attacks.

"Why were you in the way?" Gajeel bellowed, showing his fear in his own way. Sadly, Lucy didn't see it that way and ended up chasing him around with an oversized axe.

* * *

"Yeah, we really need to work on teamwork." Levy sighed.

"Well, some of it's okay." Lucy said brightly.

"Yeah, and we might need to train more, if we're not stronger, there a chance that Laxus will crush us." Gajeel added.

"That's right... I mean, there's a chance that I could beat him, but there's no telling what the other's will have up their sleeves." Natsu groaned.

"There are other powerful teams, you know." Lucy sighed.

"That's true... But we have to beat Laxus and Cobra." Natsu said loudly.

"What? Why them?" Levy asked, forgetting to pretend to sound annoyed.

"Well, it's another contest. We may or may not have made a bet." Gajeel admitted.

"What kind of bet?" Lucy asked, tone becoming dangerous.

"N-nothing to worry about... We just don't want to lose." Natsu said.

" _Natsu_." She growled.

Gajeel watched as Lucy chased Natsu around their campsite. It was actually quite funny, and he could use it as blackmail later. Still, it didn't change the fact that Salamander looked utterly ridiculous.

"Sappy crap." He muttered.

"Do you really think that?" Levy asked. Gajeel stared at her in suprise. He hadn't thought that she could hear him. She smiled at him, looking so innocent and sweet in the semi light of dusk.

"I think it's kinda romantic."

Gajeel found himself unable to respond to that. It was one of the few times he found himself at a loss for words. Funny, how Shrimp could do that so easily.

* * *

"Okay, you guys really need to work on hand to hand combat." Gajeel sighed. It was mid afternoon the following day, and they had been practicing for most of the morning. The Dragon Slayers had come to a rather alarming discovery.

"Well, Lucy''s kicks are quite good." Natsu shrugged. "She's kicked me into walls often enough."

"Fine, you help her improve, I'll help Shrimp, and eventually, they'll be ." Gajeel said.

"Am I the only one worried?" Lucy asked.

"No, you're not." Levy said nervously, backing away.

"Okay, Shrimp, I'll be blunt, you're short." Gajeel told her. Levy glared at him, but didn't say anything, as she was secretly glad that their actual training hadn't started yet. Seriously, were Natsu and Lucy made up of energy? It was _scary_.

"But that's good, in this case, 'cause we can use that." He continued, ignoring the loud crashing sounds in a nearby clearing and Levy's death glare.

"They'll underestimate you, and you'll be able to slip in under thier guards. Then you'll hit them hard." Gajeel finished.

"Yeah, I can't hit hard." Levy sighed. Then she sorely wished she hadn't said anything, if the look on Gajeel's face was anything to go by.

"Don't worry Shrimp, you'll be able to punch through stone when we're done."

"Somebody save me!" She wailed, trying to run away. Sadly, she didn't get far, as Gajeel dragged her back, kicking and screaming.

"Jeez," he grumbled, "take a joke."

* * *

By the end of the week, both Natsu and Gajeel were satisfied. They were finally ready to move on to the magic portion of their training. Levy and Lucy had to admit that their training had helped them, and with a little help from her Solid Script, Levy had managed to punch through stone. She was proud. Gajeel, however, was not. He didn't appreciate being punched through walls.

"This is gonna be so awesome!" Natsu cheered. All four of them had worked together to come up with a plan for their training. It was going to be hard, but it wouldn't be worth it if it wasn't.

"Yeah, we've done a pretty good job so far." Lucy smiled.

"Pretty good? We're amazing!" Levy laughed.

"I have to agree with you there, Shrimp." Gajeel nodded.

"S-Class, here we come!"


	56. Chapter 56

**A/N Hi! I'm really sorry for the lack of updates recently, life has just been really busy lately, so I'm afraid I may not be able to get as many chapters done, but there'll definitely be at least one a week! Sorry, I hope you enjoy, and as usual, I don't own Fairy Tail**

Group 2: Laxus, Cana, Lisana and Meredy.

* * *

They were walking through a large forest, looking for a good place to train, a place that wouldn't matter that much once it was totally destroyed and where there was a very small chance of being seen by the other teams.

Well, they were nearing a good place, but the group had settled into an uneasy silence, and it was annoying both Lisanna and Meredy, so one of them decided to break the ice, even if it meant getting electrecuted.

"So, Laxus, are you the guy who likes Mira?" She chirped.

"W-what?" Laxus spluttered. He was too taken off guard to totally deny it or shut her up.

"Oh my gosh, you _do_ like her!" Lisanna gasped, grinning.

"Oh really?" Meredy smirked. "Hidden romance, huh?"

"Laxus!" Cana pretended to be hurt. "You kept that from us? Hm, to make up for it, you can spill all the juicy details!"

" _Women_." Laxus groaned, banging his head on a tree. "What is wrong with you?"

"Isn't that what we should be asking you?" Meredy said sweetly. "I mean, you kept something like that to yourself!"

"Yeah Laxus," Lisanna whined. "How could you?"

"I don't like Mira like that!" Laxus yelled.

" _Sure_ you don't" Cana laughed.

"Why you..." Laxus snarled, faltering at the thought of an insult bad enough to describe exactly how he felt. He failed, and spent the rest of the day sulking, not even bothering to listen in as the conversation quickly turned to a more girly theme. Well, not until he heard his name being mentioned.

"Laxus?"

"Is he listening?"

"LAXUS!"

"What?" He snapped.

"Well," Lisanna shifted uncomfortably, making Laxus think that she had pulled some kind of short straw. "It's just, if we're going to work as a team, we'll need to know about each other, right?"

"What do you want to know?" He asked coldly.

"Well, uh, nothing too personal, just stuff like favourite colour, you know?" She asked in a cheery tone that sounded forced.

"Yellow." He snapped. "What now?"

"Uh, why don't you guys ask the questions?" Lisanna said quickly, stepping back.

"Nah, we can save this for a later time." Meredy shrugged.

"Yeah, we might want to start looking for a place to camp." Cana sighed.

"Yeah, it'll be dark soon." Lisanna agreed.

* * *

Laxus dreamed of the war, something that came as a suprise as he hardly ever did that anymore. He'd see past opponents, Acnologia, his own hands covered in blood, and the disapproving glares of the dragons on his side when any emotion showed on his face.

"Laxus, wake up!" Can yelled, finally jolting him awake. He watched as Acnologia's insane grin slowly faded from his vision and was replaced with his guildmate's worried faces.

"Are you okay?" Meredy asked.

"Here, I've made some tea." There was a clinking noise as she passed around tin cups.

"What was it about?" Cana asked, still pale.

"Dragon Civil War." He grunted. "Stuff like that."

"Oh." Meredy said quietly. "I guess we all seem quite selfish, don't we?"

"What do you mean?" Laxus asked, confused.

"Well, we're all worried about silly things, like becoming S-Class and then there's you, having been through so much, it makes us look rather silly." She explained, not meeting his eyes.

"Becoming S-Class is a valid fear." Laxus shrugged. "Just because not getting it isn't the end of the world doesn't make it silly." He looked at Cana. She had been acting uncomfortable since before the S-Class exams were announced.

"Besides, I get the feeling it means a lot to each of you."

* * *

"Alright," Laxus boomed the next morning. "Are you going to take this training seriously?"

"Yes!" The rest of his team chorused,

"Then give me fifty press ups." He ordered.

"What, are you insane?" Cana yelled.

"Yea, that's way too much, especially for the first day of training." Meredy agreed.

Laxus sat down. "You can't want to be S-Class all that badly then."

"What the- you literally said yesterday that you could see that it meant a lot to us." Lisanna protested.

"Then tell me why. What makes you think that you can get S-Class if you can't do fifty press ups." He argued.

"Look, we don't have to tell you anything. And what does doing press ups have to do with becoming S-Class?" Cana yelled.

"Dedication." Laxus told her flatly. "If you can't be bothered to do press ups, how will you be bothered to become S-Class?"

"I-I..." Cana trailed off, glaring at him.

"What motivates you to become S-Class?" He challenged. "Use the same thing to get you through push ups, if they're that bad."

"He has a point." Lisanna said cheerfully, mood having completely changed.

"Yeah, I mean, we all owe each other more than to back up now." Meredy agreed.

"I still don't like you." Cana glared.

"Those," Laxus said sagely. "Are the press ups talking."

"Remember we only have limited time!" Laxus barked. They were working on meditating to improve their magic.

"We know." Meredy snapped.

"You in particular. Your magic has potential, especially considering how adaptable it is, but you rely on hand to hand to fighting more." Laxus told her, tone softening a bit when he saw her face.

"Yeah, but I just..." She trailled off.

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure we can get around it." Laxus said warmly.

"Yeah, whatever it is, it's cool." Cana nodded.

"Yep!" Lisanna smiled at her.

"Well, we've certainly come a long way." Laxus grinned.

"Well, yeah. We're a team." Cana said, summing up all their thoughts.

"Wait... does this mean that we can't annoy Laxus over how much he _looooooooooooves_ Mira?" Meredy gasped.

"Yes!" Laxus said quickly.

"No!" Lisanna and Cana chorused happily.


	57. Chapter 57

**A/N Hi! Sorry this is slightly late. I have some news! This story has been added to the Favourite Fairy Tail Fanfiction 2016, which is really cool, so if you guys want to check that out, feel free! Hope you all enjoy the chapter, and as usual, I don't own Fairy Tail! :)**

Group 3: Mika, Cobra, Droy and Elfman.

To say Cobra was thrilled with his new team would be a lie. To say he was mildly happy would also be a lie. To say he was barely tolerating them would be stretching it, if you asked him.

Mika was alright. She was nice, and he didn't mind working with her. She was, without a doubt a strong and capable woman, worthy of respect. Droy and Elfman however... weren't worth the headache.

"Waaaaaaaaaaah, how could I not be with Levy!" Droy wailed.

"IT'S MANLY TO MISS YOUR CRUSH!" Elfman bellowed, making Cobra and Mika cringe.

"MIRA IS EVIL! SHE MUST SUPPORT GAJEEL AND LEVY! SHE'S THE WORST!" Droy continued, still crying.

"IT'S UNMANLY TO INSULT A REAL MAN'S SISTER!" Elfman roared, slapping Droy, who didn't seem to notice through his continued sobs.

Cobra was honestly on the verge of poisoning them both. Then they would be moaning in pain and begging, which would be even worse. By the sounds of things, Mika was about to do something similar.

"YOU NEED TO MAN UP!" Elfmas screamed, lunging at Droy.

"YOUR SISTER IS HORRIBLE!" Droy sniffed, side stepping the attack.

"BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP!" Mika finally snapped and yelled at them. She sounded so angry that both of the previously arguing mages cowered in fear.

"You've been driving me, and probably Cobra, insane for the past four hours. We're sick of it, so shut up unless you wish to die a slow, painful death." Mika snarled, looking like Gray when someone told Juvia that he was dating another woman. It was scary.

"And it would be agonising." Cobra added darkly.

" _Very_ agonising." Mika added thoughtfully.

"All right, we get it. We were being unmanly." Elfman said, sounding sheepish. "As a real man, I apologise."

" _I_ wasn't doing anything wrong!" Droy objected childishly. Elfman made up for their argument by dragging the block of ice that was now Droy.

* * *

"So, we're trying to learn to work as a team to get to S-Class." Cobra announced. The group were holding a meeting the next morning.

"Yeah," Mika shrugged, "but I don't like our chances."

"It's unmanly to give up before we even start!" Elfman said loudly.

"Did he... actually say something smart?" Cobra wondered.

Mika looked impressed.

Droy looked up. "So you actually think we have a chance?"

"We won't even have that if we give up." Elfman told them.

"That's true. We can give it our best shot." Cobra nodded, agreeing with Elfman.

"If that's the case." Mika smirked. "Let me come up with the plan for our training."

* * *

Trusting Mika turned out to be a bad idea. She was absolutely evil when it came to planning and Cobra firmly believed that half of the stuff she wanted them to do was physically impossible.

Then again, if they actually managed to pull of her insane plan, then their chances would be quite good. Still, Cobra didn't think the others would be able to function on a mere two hours sleep.

Still, with much complaining, they agreed to go through with the plan.

Each morning, they would do individual training. They would have to work out how to improve on their own, which was a lot of pressure considering how it could drag down their team. Still, Cobra thought they were managing pretty well, all things considered.

Then it was team work in the afternoons. Whatever thoughts Cobra had of their progress being good went out of the window almost as soon as they started. They would stumble into each other's attacks and generally end up injured and fustrated.

* * *

"This isn't working." Droy complained on their fifth day.

"You don't say." Cobra snapped, tired and annoyed.

"Arguing isn't going to help us." Mika warned.

"Yeah, I think we're all acting unmanly." Elfman sighed.

"Well, our teamwork is horrible, so... Well, we'll work on that in more depth tomorrow, instead of individual training. Anyway, onto tactics and stealth!" Mika said brightly, making all of them groan. Tactics and stealth were pure torture. Necessary torture, but it was still horrible.

That particular evening, Mika had arranged a nice game of capture the flag. Cobra was fairly confident that Droy would be good in defence, and where they had hidden the flag was certainly not somewhere even Mika would want to know. He was just suprised that Droy agreed to hide in between two hornet nests.

He guessed that Mika would be on the offensive, as she was much more suited to stealth than Elfman was. That meant that Droy would be stuck dealing with her, and she was by no means an easy opponent. Cobra knew that he'd have to finish this quickly if they were to succeed.

He was tracking the flag by scent, something he found rather odd that they hadn't already taken into account... Unless... Sure enough, their scent led to the river.

Cobra was as impressed as he was annoyed. They had not only removed their scent trails in the water, but it would also dilute his attacks if he were to attack them. It was clever, but not entirely expected. After all, there were more ways of tracking someone. While the water drowned out any noise, it didn't hide where the pebbles had shifted under Elfman's weight. There were a trail of footprints leading straight for them. This was going to be easy.

Mika sighed. She was crouched on a tree branch, hidden from anyone who would pass by below. She honestly had no idea where Cobra would have hidden the flag. For someone who heard so much, he talked annoyingly little, and she had almost nothing to go on so she could guess where he had hidden the flag. Still, she knew he was smart, and that he would've left Droy on guard. She also knew that he'd be able to take out Elfman fairly quickly. It really was a race against time, and with no way of tracking them. She shuddered as she began to hear the buzzing of a hornet nest. She hated those things.

She decided to check it out, if only to get its postition so she could take note to avoid it. Following the horrible buzzing sound, she crept closer to the nest. There were two massive nest perched in the trees, and between them... a flash of coulour. They actually hid their flag in between _hornet_ nests?

She looked around, expecting to see Droy hidden somewhere nearby. But no, he was right between the nests, and had somehow become friends with the blasted things. He was smiling like an idiot while they flew happily around him. Mika shuddered. She really hated wasps.

She let her magic seep into the air, and Droy did a good job not to flinch. He must not want to startle the wasps. She cringed. How was she supposed to do this?

Thankfully, she never had to answer that question. Sadly, that was the only good thing that happened. Cobra was running blindly away from Elfman, unable to hear the hornets over the racket that they were making.

The two stumbled into the nest, breaking one of them, and leaving a dent in the other one. Mika tried to run, but it was too late...

* * *

"I'm sorry!" Droy protested.

"I, for one, think you somehow planned that." Cobra snapped. Three of them had been swarmed and had stumbled blindly into a river, while one of them stood there calmly, watching all the chaos unfold.

Mika, Elfman and Cobra were absolutely covered in stings, and none of them were happy with Droy.

"That was unmanly." Elfman complained.

"I'm sorry!" Droy muttered.

"Well, I have been able to conclude something from this." Mika announced, making them all jump. She had been sulking quietly in a corner.

"What is it?" They all asked.

"That we clearly have room for improvement." She sighed. They all groaned.

"We're still totally gonna be S-Class, though."


	58. Chapter 58

Group 4: Rogue, Kinana, Juvia and Gray.

Rogue had been lingering at the edge of their group ever since they had been put together. He had been quiet when they were planning whatever secret place they would go to in order to train secretly, only nodding when they wanted his opinion on what they had decided.

He was fine with going to a beach again. It had been enjoyable enough the first time, and if they worked properly, it would help them with endurance and teamwork, so he didn't see the terrain as an issue. Not to mention that it was sneaky enough that no one else would think of it, so he didn't see any objections. Well, he would've objected anyway, because they ended up taking a train.

All the while he tried not to look too uncomfortable, he wondered how he didn't see it coming. Well, that and other things. Like how the others were doing. Or why he had to leave Frosch behind. It wasn't that he didn't trust Mira, after all, she was Lisanna's sister, and Lisanna had been the one to bring the Exceed into his life in the first place. It was just that he missed his friend more than he would like to admit. (That wasn't saying much, at all. He really missed Frosch, and if he wasn't being so awkward, he would've said so. A lot.)

* * *

When they had finally arrived at the town they would be staying at, because none of them really wanted to camp. Seriously, their intense training would be enough, camping really was pushing it. It would be cold and uncomfortable. Then again, Rogue really didn't care. He couldn't speak for the others, but he hadn't so much as heard of a bed until he ended up living with the humans. He had to admit that beds were possilby one of the best things that humans had come up with.

Then again, trains were possibly the worst. Honestly, they were nothing but meaningless torture. Didn't humans know walking was good for them? Trains were just excessive, if you asked him. Walking raised you endurance, if only slightly, and he liked to think it was character building. Sting did always say he was weird.

His team mates did seem awfully happy. Kinana tried to include him in the conversation a couple of times, and he'd speak, only quietly, but it was still speaking. He supposed that it was Juvia's apparently spreading happiness from being placed with her beloved Gray. Kinana seemed more than happy to watch the drama, and Rogue had to agree with her. It was incredibly funny to watch Gray squirm.

"Juvia is so happy that she's with Gray for the trials!" She chirped, hugging him tightly.

"Yeah," Gray stammered, trying to escape, "that's great and all, but please can I be allowed to breathe?"

"Juvia is sorry!" She cried, horrified. Rogue privately wondered if they'd be kicked out of their hotel for the noise they were making. He decided to slip down to the bar area and apologise. It might help. He quietly told Kinana where he was going. He wasn't entirely sure that she heard, but she nodded. Smiling, he slipped out of their room.

* * *

The bar was small but pleasant. People were sitting around and drinking, laughing and talking. Yet they were remarkably quiet and seemed to be listening to something.

"Wah, Gray has fallen for a love-rival!"

Yes, even three floors and a coridoor away, his team mates could still be heard. He walked over to the bar, fighting to keep his face calm, even though he was mortified.

"I'm sorry about the noise my team mates are making." He said quietly. The man behind the bar, who he knew to be owner of their hotel, suprised Rogue by laughing heartily and slapping him on the back.

"Don't worry about it, it's rather entertaining!" He boomed. Sadly, this brought him to the attention of everyone else in the bar.

"You're with them?"

"Are they always like this?"

"They should make their own show!"

"I'd pay good money to see that."

It wasn't until he finally escaped, that he realised that Kinana had a secret supply of ear plugs, and that was how she had managed not to go deaf.

* * *

Rogue was pleased to see that his team mates were serious about training. There were no arguments, no planning... they just got on with it. It was a refreshing change from the previous training he had done with the other slayers. Honestly, Natsu would object to almost everything they did, until Laxus threatened to knock him out. Then they'd do whatever the training was, but it'd take them forever, because Natsu and Gajeel would drag them into their fights.

This time, Kinana would call out what they needed to work on, and they'd do it. He was fine, and actually starting to enjoy training, until it came to their teamwork. Rogue had never really been on a team with anyone other than the Dragon Slayers, and occasionally, he would be on a team with Yukino and Sting. This was new, and he was useless at communicating to his team.

Every time they would go through their drills, he would take someone by suprise and it would break whatever concentration they had.

It would've been so much easier if he knew them well, if he'd had another Dragon Slayer with him. They had been a team for so long, they had been all the support he needed. Yet when they came to the humans, it was like a whole other world. Everything changed. Rogue wasn't sure whether it was all for the good. They had split up, formed bonds with other people... Drifting apart...

He still had nightmares about the dungon. Occasionally, he'd wake up screaming. He never thought to mention it to anyone, it wasn't important. They didn't need to worry about him anymore than they had already. All this meant that his team mates found out the hard way...

Rogue blinked. He was in a dimly lit room, it was rough and made of concrete. Almost at once, a mixture of unpleasant smells overpowered him. If he paused to identify each one, he'd recognise the harsh taint of rust, the sour smell of mould and the metallic reek of blood. He could hear quiet sobs, moans and chains rattling. Yet worst of all, those footsteps. Echoing, strong. Unforgiving. He prayed for them not to stop, knowing that almost everyone else was wishing the same thing. If they stopped outside you cell, it would mean taunts or pain. He supposed it didn't really matter. The shadow was there. Talking. Mocking. Always there.

He didn't want to listen. But there was nothing to drown it out. Nothing and no one...

* * *

Juvia finally snapped and drenched the Shadow Dragon Slayer. He had been thrashing around for the past ten minutes and was proving impossible to wake up. It had been Gray who noticed Rogue first. Then he had tried to wake Rogue up, and the noise woke up Kinana and then Kinana managed to trip over Juvia.

They were worried. They all knew that Rogue was probably suffering from the time he had spent in that prision. He wished that he had told them. They might not be Frosch, or Dragon Slayers, or Yukino, but they were still his Guild mates, his comrades. He could trust them. Heck, they were supposed to be a team.

Rogue felt bad. The others had woken him up and passed around warm drinks. They'd listened and been so _nice_. And there he was, having not even bothered to tell them about what was wrong...

So after that, he made double the effort on the dreaded teamwork exercises, and after a little while, they weren't so dreaded. Things definately took a turn for the better. He found that he'd made three irreplacable friends, and Kinana lent him some earpugs. Still, they both soon shipped Gruvia, so the noise didn't bother them that much.


	59. Chapter 59

**A/N I'm really sorry for not updating in so long, but I've had a rather bad case of writer's block for this story... As usual, I don't own Fairy Tail and I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

Group 5: Sting, Angel, Mest and Ultear.

"This is the absolute worst. Being stuck with _you_." Sting spat.

"You don't say." Angel snarled. "I actually thought that these trials were going to be ... I don't know, less annoying than _this_!"

"Gah, you're ruining the whole thing!" Sting yelled.

"Did you even hear what I just said?" Angel screamed.

"Yes, and it was rubbish, like everything else you say!" Sting retorted.

Mest watched with open curiousity as Ultear struggled to supress her anger. One of her eyebrows was twitching and she was wearing a forced smile that looked more like a snarl. Mest decided it would be better to edge away and pretend he didn't know any of them. He thought his acting was pretty good, but he didn't really know them so it wasn't really acting.

Still, he thought he would rather like to get to know them. Maybe not Sting and Angel, as they were in their own little world. Ultear, however, seemed perfectly nice and respectable. In fact, if he wasn't sent to Fairy Tail to investigate all of the newcomers, he would've loved to be friends with the lot of them. Sadly, he had pulled the short straw and had to investigate a group of perfectly nice people. It didn't even pay that well.

He was tasked with watching the Dragon Slayers, watching the group that had recently joined (only because the council really didn't like them) and then watch Fairy Tail overall, because the Magic Council was just itching to get them into trouble.

It sucked.

"Why are you even here?"

"'Cause I want to be! Problem?"

"YES!"

Why bother sulking when he had such a great argument to enterain him? Ultear, however, wasn't seeing the funny side. She looked like she was on the verge of snapping and breaking both of their necks.

"I can do this whole thing without you!" Angel screamed, storming off in one direction.

"I didn't want you here anyway!" Sting yelled with equal volume, charging off in the other direction.

Ultear sighed, and banged her head on a nearby wall. "I never had high hopes for this team anyway."

Mest blinked. "That's a little harsh, don't you think?"

"I suppose. I don't personally know your magic, or your fighting ability, and I already know that our team work will be awful because of the fine display we just witnessed." Ultear said dully.

"I'd like to say that what you just said was pretty biased, but at this point, I think you're telling the future." He sighed. She probably really wanted to become S-Class, and it must really be a pain to be stuck with a team that already didn't get along.

"Well," he sighed, not entirely sure what to say, "we should probably go and get them. I'll take Sting and you take Angel?"

Ultear shrugged. "Sure. Let me know where you hid his body."

* * *

Sting was sulking underneath a tree. Mest idly wondered what it was with the Dragon Slayers and trees. Seriously, they seemed to appreciate nature much more than any other normal person. Then again, who was he to judge? Trees were cool.

"Uh... Hi?" Mest found himself at a lack of words. He hardly knew Sting, and the Dragon Slayer did not seem to be in the best of moods.

"Hi." Sting sighed, looking at the floor.

"So, uh," Mest wondered what he could possilby say, "you and Angel don't get along, huh?"

"Wow, so you noticed?" Sting said sarcastically.

"No need to be so harsh." Mest fought to keep his tone neutral. This guy was really pushing it.

"Whatever." Sting huffed, glaring at a tree. It looked like he was about to start destroying the enitre forest so Mest used the first thing he could think of to stop him from destroying everything.

"So, why do you hate each other so much?"

Sting shrugged. "Well, I suppose it was ages ago, when she first joined the guild. Yukino was really happy, and I was happy too, 'cause I hadn't seen her all day. I thought something weird had happened, you know? Anyway, she had this person in a cloak with her, and she was practically jumping up and down she was so excited. So, I asked what was up and well... Angel took off her hood and stared at me, then said I would never be good enough for her baby sister. I got super mad and asked what the hell she was talking about. Then she huffed and looked away. Yukino was no help at all, she was just laughing. Then she does just about everything to make my life a living hell." Sting finished.

Mest stared at him. "Did you even pause for breath in all of that?" He was fairly sure that the Dragon Slayer hadn't even blinked, let alone breathed, and it was creepy. Really creepy.

"That's what you're concerned about, not the whole story?" Sting yelled.

"Yeah, but we all know Angel's kind of a bitch. What were you expecting?" Mest asked, raising an eyebrow.

* * *

"You know that Sting's an arrogant bastard, right? What else did you want from him?" Ultear snapped. She had just finished a speech that was scarily similar to Mest's, but with more threatening. Angel rolled her eyes and made a rude had gesture. One that everyone hoped that Wendy didn't already know.

She probably did.

"All right, can you two at least pretend to get along for this trial?" Mest asked, already covering his ears.

"No!" Both mages screamed at the highest volume possible.

Ultear gave them her darkest glare yet. It looked like she would quite happily raise hell and trap the two mages in it, then throw away the key.

Mest was _very_ glad that the look wasn't aimed at him. Ultear, in all her terrifying glory, was a scary woman.

"How about I rephrase that," Ultear snarled," you're going to get along in this entire trial. Then you can go back to fighting. Far. Away From. Me."

Both mages nodded, terrified. Mest couldn't blame them, and he wondered if Ultear was secretly a demon.

* * *

She certainly acted like one. Day after day of training, she would force them to do almost everything that they could physically do, then some more.

One particular evening, she decided that it would be a great idea to paly a game of cards. Mest wasn't entirely sure which game it was exactly, as there seemed to be a lot of rule changing. And cheating. And screaming.

For once, Ultear was putting up with it. Why, you ask? Because she was one of the people doing the screaming.

"FOR THE LOVE OF ALL LIVING THINGS, SHUT UP AND PLAY!"

Poor, poor Angel had complained at how stupid this game was. Normally, Mest would feel bad for Angel, but she had also called Ultear stupid, forgetting about how Ultear had ridicously sharp senses about that kind of thing, so she had really brought that one on herself.

Sting, on the other hand, had learned his lesson quickly, and had one of the best poker faces Mest had ever seen.

Well, eventually, he cracked, and Mest watched with horror as he made a comment about Angel that had her screaming, then he screamed back then Ultear snapped. Somehow, it ended up with the cards being tipped into a fire. It wasn't fun. At all.

He couldn't help but feel that the actual exam wasn't going to be much easier, either.


	60. Chapter 60

Group 6: Jellal, Wendy, Yukino and Jet

"I feel like all the other groups must be doing so much better right now." Wendy said sadly.

They had seen a oak forest, and decided that it would be a great idea to train in there. Unfortunately, they had been caught in a downpour, and they had taken shelter in a hollow tree.

"Don't worry." Yukino said, reassuringly. "We'll be right on track after this thunderstorm."

There was a sudden flash of lightning and Wendy let out a squeak and clung to Yukino. She had never been afraid of thinderstorms before. The fear had surfaced when she had started settling with humans. She supposed it must have been something from before.

It was nice to have something.

"Does anyone not like tea?" Jellal called. He had taken shelter further back in the massively oversized tree, and had been messing with their equipment. Jet had joined him. Yukino had rolled her eyes, muttering something that sounded like 'men', and had huddled up with Wendy to watch the storm.

Yukino glanced back. "Tea is good. Only if there's sugar though."

"Then come back here and add it." Jet yelled over a particually loud grumble of thunder, which made Wendy flinch and hold onto Yukino's arm.

Yukino carefully added sugar to her drink, then offered the sugar bowl (it was more like a tin) to Wendy. She tipped the whole thing into her drink.

Jet stared. Jellal stared. Yukino stared.

"W-what?" Wendy asked, suddenly scared. Was it bad to add too much sugar?

"It's just that... Woah." Jet murmured.

"That's a lot of sugar." Jellal supplied.

"Carla banned me from chocolate until after the exam." Wendy explained, head bowed in shame. "So I went for the next best thing."

There was a long pause. Finally, Jellal spoke up.

"Jet, go into town and get some chocolate."

* * *

There was no ill feeling in their group, no crazy love triangles, no hatred. Just and easy friend ship, and it made everything easier.

The day after the heavy rain, they decided to start slowly, so no one would be uncomfortable. Wendy used the soft ground to launch herself at Jellal, aiming a kick at his face. He blocked without too much effort, then rushed in for a punch while she landed.

She managed to block, and their odd dance continued for a while. They were working on combat, just to see where everyone was at the moment.

Wendy had already fought Jet and Yukino, but so far, Jellal had been her most challenging opponent. No doubt he had trained a lot.

There was a loud sound, and they both turned to see Jet get kicked into a tree by Yukino, who looked mortified.

"Sorry!" She yelped, rushing over to help Jet.

"It's fine." He grunted. "Didn't hurt a bit."

Wendy walked over, readying her healing magic. "I can stop the bruise."

Jellal smiled. "We're lucky to have such a talented healer on our team."

Wendy blushed. "T-thank you."

Yukino ruffled Wendy's hair. "See, our team is going to be just great."

* * *

It had rained, again. None of them really wanted to go out in the dark, especially while it was raining. Instead, they gathered around the heat lacrima in the hollow tree and talked.

"So, why do you want to become S-Class?" Jellal asked, looking to start a converation.

"Erm... I want to prove that I'm strong," Wendy admitted, "well... That, and I made a bet?"

"Wendy!" Yukino gasped. "Aren't you too young to be gambling?"

"Never mind that," Jet asked, looking excited, "what was the bet?"

"Well, Natsu, Gajeel and I all have to do better or beat Laxus, Cobra, Sting and Rogue." She confessed, looking at the ground. "And if we don't something bad happens. Very bad."

"Wendy," Jellal said slowly, in a voice that suggested he was fighting to stay calm, "how badly do we need to do this."

"Very." She said quickly, still not looking at any of them.

"Right." The other three sighed. Well, that was a load more work for them.

"What are your reasons?" Wendy asked quickly, looking to avoid silence.

"To see if I can!" Yukino said cheerfully. The others looked at her approvingly.

"To impress Levy! And beat Gajeel and Droy!" Jet exclaimed enthusiastically.

"Beating Gajeel doesn't really affect the bet, I suppose..." Wendy whispered.

"Well, if I don't make it, I feel like I'll be letting Erza down." Jellal sighed. Yukino sighed, and patted his shoulder in sympathy.

"So, we all need to do this, for our own reasons." Wendy summed up.

"True." The other three chorused.

"So we'll do our best!"

"Yeah!"

"Wait... Can I smell something burning?"

"Yeah, Jella, weren't you cooking dinner on the heat lacrima?"

"SHIT!"

"LANGUAGE!"

"Yukino is scary."

"I already knew that word..."

* * *

"Magic training!" Jet yelled happily. Again, the air was fresh after the storm, and they were all happy to get back to their training.

"This should be great!" Yukino chirped.

"Should be." Wendy agreed.

It was. They managed to come up with several good combonations of attacks, so their teamwok was certainly becoming a force to be reckoned with.

After an entire day of exhausting themselves using magic, they had collapsed around a fire that Jellal had made.

"Say, Wendy..." Jellal began.

"Yes?" She asked. She was slightly confused by his tone.

"Forgive me if this is rude, but how does that ultimate spell work? You know, with the transformation?" He asked. Wendy paused to think.

"You transform slowly, using magic seals." She explained, ignoring the image of Acnologia that flashed in the back of her mind.

"So, would it work if you only tried to do certain features?" Jellal asked. "Like the claws."

"I suppose so," Wendy shrugged, "but it'd be much more simple to just make them out of wind."

"But would they be more powerful?" Jet asked, appartently seeing what Jellal was getting at.

"Yes... Oh! You're saying that I should the spell in small doses?" Wendy guessed.

"Only if it's watered down!" Yukino added sternly.

"I think I can work on it, but what if the other Dragon Slayers try it too?" Wendy asked, suddenly worried.

"I doubt that they'll have come up with it." Jet soothed.

"And if they have, that's all the more reason to try it." Jellal sighed.

"If they see me do it, then they might try it on the spot and take it too far." Wendy sighed.

"That's a point." Yukino murmured.

"Still, it won't hurt if you try it, right?" Jet asked.

"I suppose not. Tomorrow though." Wendy sighed, suddenly very tired.

"Sure. We should probably sleep now, anyway." Jellal told them...

Jet sighed. "Do we have to?"

Yukino frowned. "But if Wendy's tired, she needs to sleep."

Jet laughed quietly. "You haven't noticed she's already asleep?"

Yukino glared. "I'm too tired to deal with you. Just sleep."

Jet turned to Jellal.

"What about you?"

"What about me?" Jellal asked.

"Are you going to sleep?" Jet asked.

"Probably. I _am_ really tired." The blue haired man shrugged.

"Seriously, you're all going to sleep?" Jet complained. He turned to where they had all dumped their bags and went through all his equipment. Ah, there they were...

The next morning, he was attacked by three very angry mages. Too bad he was too busy laughing to run. Jellal, Yukino and Wendy all looked very funny with cat whiskers, 'eye liner' among other pictures on their faces. Needless to say, they didn't think so. At all...

Well, it wasn't them who would be in a wheelchair for the S-Class trials. Yukino had some scarily amazing ideas.


	61. Chapter 61

**A/N: I'm really sorry for not updating for so long. It was mainly due to a lack of interest in Fairy Tail in general, and only recently have I found the motivation to write for Fairy Tail. To those of you who have been waiting and are reading this, thank you so much for sticking with this for so long. I hope you enjoy the ending :)**

As a reminder:

Group 1: Gajeel, Levy, Natsu and Lucy.

Group 2: Laxus, Cana, Lisana and Meredy.

Group 3: Mika, Cobra, Droy and Elfman.

Group 4: Rogue, Kinana, Juvia and Gray.

Group 5: Sting, Angel, Mest and Ultear.

Group 6: Jellal, Wendy, Yukino and Jet

* * *

All of the teams for the S-Class trials were gathered in the guild hall, and all of them were looking suspiciously at each other. Each group was huddled together, looking either very nervous, in the case of Wendy, Yukino, Mest and... surprisingly, Elfman.

Everyone else was at least acting confident. As for the S-Class mages who were going to be helping with the trials... well, they were nowhere to be seen.

The stage was empty. None of them were really concerned, because someone would have to turn up sooner than later, and actually start the test. Then an hour passed. And another.

"Maybe it's a test of patience?" Lucy offered weakly.

"Well, if it is, then it sucks." Natsu complained loudly.

"Stop complaining, you moron." Gray called from accross the room. "We're all sick of it. Shut up and deal with it."

"Take your own advice! It's not MANLY to complain about things!" Elfman bellowed, apparently over his small fit of fear, and ready to become a hypocrite to show his manliness.

"Idiots. You're all idiots." Angel muttered. She had not been in a good mood at all since they had left for training. Her teammates had also been in a bad mood, with her constant arguing with Sting and Ultear and Mest stuck listening to the two of them.

They were all just about ready to kill for a cup of coffee at this point.

Sadly, Angel had forgotten about the dragonslayers with super hearing. "I heard that. I never, _ever_ thought you'd talk about yourself like that." Sting gasped in fake horror.

"SHUT UP!" She roared, and everyone else winced from the volume. Poor Cobra actually fell over, it was so loud.

Elfman helped his teammate up. "It's MANLY to help your friends." He explained in a quiet voice, just so Cobra didn't fall over again.

They were one of the more successful teams in working together.

This couldn't be said for all of the teams, like how Angel and Sting had moved on to attempting to kill each other for the two thousand and thirty second time. Instead of trying to stop them, Mest simply grabbed Ultear and teleported away.

Then Sting accidently hit Jellal, who was flung into Gajeel. Gajeel responded by attempting to hit both Sting and Jellal, and ended up hitting Droy and Lisana.

Soon, there was a nice, classic brawl going on, destroying most of the chairs, and a couple of tables.

Everyone was dragged into it, even the normally sensible ones, like Lisana, Levy and Lucy.

Makarov had finally shown up and was standing on the stage, watching all hell break lose with a smile on his face.

Oh, how he had _missed_ this!

Not.

"ALRIGHT BRATS! STOP! NOW! GET IN LINE!" He bellowed, and everyone froze.

"It's not what it looks like?" Rogue offered quietly, and there was a long silence.

"Nice try, kid." Mika whispered loudly, and everyone sheepishly shuffled back into place.

"Okay. I'm going to explain this. Slowly. And you're all going to listen." Master sighed. He had everyone's attention now, they all wanted to hear what the trials were, because -damn it all- they'd waited two hours for this, it'd better be good.

"First of all, I wanted to congratulate you on learning to work as a team... Even if some are better than others." Here, Makarov stopped speaking to aim a pointed glare at Sting and Yukino.

"And if there _had_ been an exam, then I'm sure that you would have performed well. However, there isn't actually an exam, it was all a ruse."

Master waited for the furious yells to die down. "We, as in the S-Class mages and myself wanted to inspire bonds withing the members of the guild. Recently we have had a lot of new members, and to cope with this and recapture the spirit of Fairy Tail, we wanted you all to become friends, get to know eachother. Because here in Fairy Tail, everyone is a comrade, a friend. We all fight alongside each other." He yelled, and the assembled mages cheered.

"Remember, that everyone here at Fairy Tail is someone that you can confide in, someone you can trust. They are your family." He finished with a wide grin.

The entire guild cheered, even the S-Class mages who were hiding behind the stage, definitely not scared of the reactions of the angry mages when the fact that the S-Class trials were a lie.

"Besides, did you really think that we were going to judge who could become S-Class on strength? With you lot in our guild? You're all at S-Class level in strength, tactics and who knows what else..." Master yelled sheepishly before running off the stage as a group of very annoyed mages showing just how S-Class in strength they were by firing off some of thier new and improved attacks at the stage...

Only for all of them to be repelled by a barrier, which flung every attack right back at them...

"Ow, that was cold! Even for me..." Natsu growled, glaring at Gray.

"That was the point!" Gray snapped back, hair on end from a rather nasty electric attack from Laxus.

"Levy... why?" Lucy whimpered, after being hit by a solid script spell.

"I didn't mean to." The bookworm mumbled, soaked from a water card from Cana.

"Alright, who's was the Celestial magic attack? I'm going to kill you!" Cobra snarled, looking badly singed.

All the Celestial mages shuddered, and Angel shuffled to hide behind Elfman... who was punched instead.

And so Fairy Tail created bonds in their favourite way: a massive fight that finished destroying all the furniture.

Especially when the S-Class mages were found. They forgot all about the dragon slayers with amazing senses of smell.

"Hello brother." Natsu smirked as the S-Class mages' cover was blown apart. "Nice joke there."

"Really funny." Laxus added darkly.

"I'm scared." Mavis whispered.

"I'm not. This'll be fun." Mira smirked.

The fight lasted for hours. Teams were created and betrayed each other... Then formed again. Each and every family member fought alongside one another at this point.

* * *

"What's going on?" A random citizen of Magnolia asked, as a colourful explosion lit up the sky above the Fairy Tail guildhall.

"Fairy Tail." Their friend answered flatly.

"Is it me or are they more violent than usual?" Someone else asked.

"Would you have them any other way?" Another citizen laughed.

* * *

Far away, the dragons were celebrating. A war that had lasted years and years had finally ended.

"It's over. It's finally over." Metalicana rumbled smugly. "We can relax now."

"No we can't." Atlas Flame snorted. "Now we've won, we've got to work on fixing things, right Igneel?"

Igneel hadn't been listening, he'd been staring off into the setting sun, teeth curled into a grin. "They're free now." He had said quietly, thinking of ther dragon slayers, closing his eyes.

He remained like that for a fleeting moment, then turned back, toothy grin in plce.

"That's right." He nodded. "We need to start talking peace with the humans." He let out a booming laugh. "And I know just who can help us."

 _I'll see you soon, Natsu. Maybe you can introduce me to your friends._

* * *

The fight had long since ended. The guildmates that had been fighting for the better part of the day, blowing off the tension they had build up for the trials. They were all asleep, having passed out fighting together, smiling as they dreamed of adventure, dreamed of fairies with tails.

All except seven of them.

The dragon slayers had stepped outside, and were staring up at the sky.

"A family, huh? Never thought I'd see the day." Gajeel sighed.

"Don't be silly Gajeel. We always had each other." Rogue corrected.

"That's true, and now we have a whole bunch of people." Sting laughed quietly.

"A family with humans. I can remember a time we all thought it was impossible." Wendy smiled, and her eyes were bright.

"That's true, we've come a long way." Cobra agreed, eyes closed. There was a gentle breeze.

"And it was a long path, and it's only going to get longer." Laxus murmured, eyes fixed on the sky.

"Well, whatever, it's not like our path is written in the stars. Who knows where it'll go." Natsu beamed.

"And we'll all go there together." They all finished.

The dragonslayers, finally free from the war, finally with a home, stepped inside to join their family. As long as they had each other- as long as they had the precious people they'd found, they'd be ready for anything.

After all, it was better when they were together, as families should be. And always would be, until the very end.


End file.
